Percussions
by clovestraddle
Summary: How far will one boy go to ensure that his older brother never has to worry about another fight or gang ever again? And can he really cope with his decision on his own? Can he handle the game?
1. Chapter 1

_[A/N: The real excitement starts next chapter, but reading this chapter won't do you much harm. :)]_

**Percussions**

Chapter 1

He was staring. At nothing special, just into the sink. His hands coiled around the edges of the marble counter as he sighed heavily. Adam looked up at his own reflection. His lips twitched into a smile as he saw himself. He was completely shirtless, and proud. He was 16 and was allowed chest surgery. It was a miracle, really. He even got an expensive, upgraded Stand-To-Pee device. It could be used for three different things, and was grossly realistic. It could be worn underneath jeans, just to seem more male. He could use it for the bathroom, and it's separate function was for sex. Not that he would need that function at all.

Nevertheless, he was proud of his body, despite certain lower areas, and other female aspects of himself. Adam turned on the tap. He focused on the water as it turned white against the marble, hitting it hard. Adam splashed some water onto his face and reached for the face towel. He turned off the tap and dapped his face. His skin now felt icy cold, it made goose-bumps produce down the back of his arms. Then he began to hear a ringing. He was confused for a moment, before realizing that it was in fact his phone. Adam tossed the towel onto the bathroom counter, and dug his hand into his pocket. He pulled it out and saw a number flash onto his screen that he wasn't familiar with. In case it was a company advertising their product, Adam used his usual tactic to make sure they never call him again. He took to his roots. Adam placed the phone to his ear.

"Hola?" Adam greeted with a nasally Spanish street-vender accent. He leaned against the bathroom wall with folded arms, awaiting the advertising to start. He heard a familiar laugh from down the line. Adam raised an eyebrow, becoming alert suddenly.

"Hola?" Came the voice. Adam jolted off the wall as his eyes widened.

"Bianca? Hey – hi – hello! Sorry!" Adam stammered, glaring around the bathroom as his heart beat began to race. He was so stupid sometimes.

"Is that was the 'Torres' in your name is for? Hola?" Bianca giggled. Adam's cheeks flushed red with embarrassment as he sported a nervous laugh in return.

"I, umm… not really, but, like…" Adam stuttered, making BIanca laugh again. Adam gulped. He hadn't spoken to Bianca 'nicely' since Adam arrived at Degrassi, and this was how they would reconnect? Over Spanish jokes? "Okay, you know what? Forget I ever did that." Adam murmured, looking down at his feet. He couldn't help but smile to himself. He sighed. "So, um… You changed your number?" He grumbled, trying to change the topic.

"No, just using a friend's." Bianca responded sweetly.

"Ah." Adam said, nodding. Bianca's voice faded as the conversation was suddenly becoming silent. Adam rubbed his sweaty hand on his side. He nodded slowly and awkwardly. Bianca was sat on her couch, watching candles as her lips tried to form a sentence. "So," Adam began again, clearing his throat. Bianca sat up straight at the sound of his voice. "Why did you, uhh…"

"Call?" Bianca finished for him in a sigh. Adam's lips quickly closed as he nodded. Then he frowned, realizing that Bianca wouldn't be able to see him.

"Yeah." He added. Bianca looked down at her hands, then at the laundered jacket at her side.

"Well," She started, "I was going through the mountains of clothes in my room, and… I found your jacket, from, umm… when I was… d-dating Drew. He borrowed it and left it here." Bianca murmured, running her tongue along the inside of her cheek. Adam paused, cringing. When Drew and Bianca were dating. Adam felt his heart began to ache, remembering how Bianca outted him publicly and tore him apart. She ruined everything.

"Which one?" Adam asked, trying to bat away the awkward silences.

"It's black, and, uhh… has a white zipper." Bianca explained, examining the jacket as she spoke.

"I thought I lost that forever." Adam grinned down at the floor.

"Well, you didn't." Bianca replied, chuckling softly. Adam looked at his reflection again, eyeing himself. "Want to pick it up?" Bianca suggested. Adam's smile faded almost instantly at that proposal. "Anytime you want, no rush." Bianca added, awkwardly.

"I, umm…" Adam gulped uneasily. He wasn't sure if he could stand seeing her again, especially not after how they left things. And especially since Drew got involved with all her trouble. "Sure." Adam ended in a low voice. "Sure, sure, definitely. I'll drop by when I can." He bit the inside of his lip, frowning downwards.

"Alright, cool." Bianca muttered as she chewed on her nails. "See you around."

"Yeah, yeah, definitely…" Adam trailed off, hearing someone yelling some downstairs. He moved towards the door, pressing his free against it. It sounded like his mother. He raised an eyebrow. Bianca observed Adam's jacket by her side. She could barely stand being near it by then.

"Anyway, I hope you've been doing well." Bianca said, sounding careless. Shivers slithered around Adam's body as the cold from the door transferred to his body and Bianca said those words. He shut his eyes.

"Been trying my best." Adam responded as the yelling from downstairs dew. Bianca adjusted her shirt nervously. She left something inside of her trigger, just hearing those words from Adam. She knew she must have missed out on quite a bit from his life, after doing what she did to him. She didn't even know to what extent the damaged was. The yelling from downstairs grew as footsteps stormed up the staircase. "I have to go, Bee." Adam said. The two of them felt their heart's race at Bianca's nickname. "Bianca." Adam corrected himself sternly. Bianca licked her lips. She deserved that one.

"Well…" Bianca sighed. Adam adjusted himself against the door. "Bye, Adam." She said. Adam's lips shivered open briefly at the sound of his name on her tongue. He hadn't heard her say it in a long time.

"Goodbye, Bianca." Adam responded, biting his lip.

"Bye." Bianca said just before hanging up. Adam pulled away from his phone, staring down at the caller ID as it faded away. He placed it on the bathroom counter, and rolled his head up against the door to face the ceiling.

"Adam!" Came the yell of his mother. Adam sighed.

"Yeah, mom?" He responded, in a whine. Audra frantically tried to open the door, scaring the life out of Adam. He jumped off it, watching the knob twist and twist. But obviously the door was locked. "Dude! Was is it, mom?" Adam grumbled, rushing to the counter. He grabbed his shirt, hauling it over himself.

"Drew's in hospital!" She gasped. Adam paused. His eyes flared at the shadow beneath the door. He firmly pulled his jacket over himself, and unlocked the door.

"What?" He grunted. Audra grabbed him.

"He was in another fight!" Audra pulled Adam downstairs. They made their way to the car, and began their drive to the hospital.

"What do you mean he was in another fight?" Adam asked, rubbing his cold hands together. It was pitch black outside and ice cold.

"He's still doing those fights so that he can prepare for that Vince guy! He's still doing all that, can you believe it? " Audra exclaimed. She had been crying. Adam gulped, staring out the window. They went over a bump, making Adam shudder even more. He pulled his sleeves over his fingers, and folded his arms. His mother started complaining again. Adam rolled his eyes and just focused on the world outside the vechical. It would be an agonizing ride. It was difficult to listen to Audra complaining about Drew, when Adam still wasn't even sure what was happening to their family and to his fellow Degrassi students. He began very detached from most drama related topics. As they drove up to the hospital and rushed to the clerk, Audra was still complaining, even to the doctors.

"He's my stupid son, that's what relation I have." Audra grumbled to the lady.

"And who is this?" The lady asked, pointing at Adam with her pencil.

"Drew's sister." Audra said subconsciously. Adam glared at her, with all his organs fumbling with nervousness as people began to stare. Adam cleared his throat, leaning forward towards the lady. He didn't look at her though.

"Brother." Adam corrected. Audra waved her hand, dismissing the comment. These slip ups were very rare, making Adam very uneasy. The woman nodded, writing all this down. Soon, they were filed down the hall, towards Drew's room. There was fire in Audra's eyes as they were met by the boy sitting up in the hospital bed with his legs dangling over the side. Drew had a patch over his eye, and had his right arm bandaged up. His neck was scattered with bruises and cuts, like many other parts of his body.

"Andrew!" Audra yelled, using his full name piercingly. Drew flinched, but his face was hard as a rock.

"Everything's under control, mom!" Drew said through his teeth. She stormed towards him. He rolled his eyes.

"You're in hospital, Andrew! How is anything under control?" She bellowed. Drew shook his head, muttering something under his breath. "This needs to stop!" Audra protested. At that, Drew hauled himself off the hospital bed.

"I'll stop when I know Vince won't go near me anymore! I'll stop when I'm safe!" Drew broke, shouting at Audra. She was taken aback, as was Adam. It was only then when Adam noticed Katie, sitting at the end of the room. She had obviously been crying. But she said nothing. Absolutely nothing.

"Drew, we can contact the police about this." Audra said, cupping Drew's face. He distorted.

"We already did!" Drew reminded her in a growl. He broke away from her, shaking his head. By then it was apparent to Audra that there wasn't much that she could say, or do. Drew breathed in and out harshly, staring down at the floor. Suddenly he raged again, and tossed over a bedside table.

"Drew!" Katie muttered, finally saying something. Drew gulped, looking down at the mess with some sort of disgust. Adam stood there, watching him. Drew could feel those baby blue eyes on his body, and quickly looked up to meet them.

"What?" Drew grumbled. Adam didn't know how to respond. He was frightened by Drew in that very moment. Especially when Drew advanced suddenly. Adam backed away into the wall.

"Drew!" Katie repeated, standing.

"What?" Drew repeated as he shouted right in Adam's face. Adam was petrified. Every feature of Drew's face was suddenly outlined in a brand new light. His veins stuck out, his eyes were wide, he was glistening with sweet and breathing hard. He looked over Drew's shoulder to see Katie, standing, looking stressed. And his own mother, Audra, sitting on the edge of Drew's hospital bed. She was exhausted. Tired. She had given up. She was sick of this more than anyone else. Adam licked his lips.

"Drew…" Adam breathed, as his collar began to get hot under the gaze of the maniac in front of him. "This needs to stop. Mom's right. I hate… seeing you like this." He admitted. Drew cursed under his breath, almost spitting on Adam as he did so. He turned away from him, marching to his bed with balled up fists. He sat next to his mother, looking furious with what Adam had said. "I really hate seeing you like this. Really." Adam emphasized. Drew looked up, with red eyes.

"Get out." He grumbled. Adam was taken by surprise. So was Katie.

"What?" Adam uttered breathlessly. Drew's chest puffed out again as his muscles tensed.

"Get out! I said get out!" Drew shouted. Adam jolted off the wall. Katie looked from Drew then to Adam, then back again. Audra looked up, unphased.

"Just do as he says, Adam. Honestly." Audra mumbled. There was a sadness in her eyes that Adam could not defy. He looked down at the floor, neglected.

"Yeah. Okay." He muttered softly. He shifted towards the door, thrusting it open. Katie sighed, and put her head in her hands. The door shut and Adam was out.

"Nice one. No, really." Katie said sarcastically into her palms. Drew glanced back at her, still enraged. He then looked back at Audra. His jaw tightened, watching her like the way she was. He shook his head as the softness washed over him. He took her hand, afraid to hurt her any further.

"Everything. Is. Alright…" Drew whispered. Audra bit her lip, staring at the wall. She didn't believe it. Neither did Katie. And neither did the figure waiting outside in the hall with his back pressed against the wall. Adam stared up at the flickering lights on the ceiling. His throat was squeezing and tightening and his eyes were blazing with tears, ready to fall. Adam frowned hard as the hot droplets began to slide down his cheeks and neck, only to be absorbed in his shirt. He breathed out softly, trying not to attract the attentions of the doctors. He brought his head into his knees, and drove his fingers into his hair. He wanted to stay like that. Away from everything. Away from the world. Somewhere where he could fit in and let everything out. But that place didn't exist. Not under his radar at least. He could hear crying from inside Drew's room. Adam shook as he listened to it, unsure who it could belong to. He just clutched himself tighter. He was once again, essentially, alone.

_[A/N: Reviews are much appreciated!]_


	2. Chapter 2

**Percussions**

Chapter 2

The pencil twisted and swung between Adam's fingers. He watched it with careful eyes as it spun and spun in circles. Then the bell rang out in the halls. He jumped, dropping the pencil. There was laughter from the row behind him. They obviously made fun of his reaction. Blushing, Adam retrieved his pencil and hauled his bag over his shoulders. He quickly escaped the stale classroom, rushing out of class. It was the final one for the day. It was late and Adam was tired. He didn't get much sleep the night before. He could barely focus in class either. Adam slipped through the school doors with a drained facial appearance. It was quite dark outside already, near a dark blue. It matched his feelings. He wore an indifferent expression. That is, until he heard his name.

"Adam." Someone called. Adam paused in his steps, at the first top of the staircase outside. He turned around to see a familiar figure. "Adam, hey." Bianca DeSousa. She came to a halt several feet away from him. Adam didn't know what to say. He just stared at her for a moment. He could tell that she was quickly growing uncomfortable.

"Hey." He returned softly. Bianca watched Adam as his eyes fell to the floor. It was the first time they had conversed face to face since their altercation. Adam toyed with the strap of his back pack. Despite his conversation with Bianca the day before, Adam still couldn't trust her. Not at all. Bianca glanced around nervously, then folded her arms. She didn't want to show the fact that she was fully of ashamed for everything that she had done to the Torres family. She nervously opened her lips.

"I heard about Drew." Bianca shivered. Adam felt his eyes sting again. Drew.

"Yeah." He uttered.

"I hope he's doing alright." Bianca said, searching for some for of emotion in Adam's face. All she saw was the sadness. No acknowledgement for her comment at all. Bianca looked away, and shrugged. "I'd go see him, but…" She trailed off. Of course. Adam looked up at her at that sentence.

"I know." Adam grumbled, fumbling with his bag. He sympathisized for her. Slightly. Very slightly. But it was just enough for him to sigh and open his mouth with a new idea. "I can bring you to him, if you like. I'm on my way home now, and…" Adam shrugged, looking out at the road. Bianca glanced up at him, with a changing expression.

"You don't have to." Bianca said quickly. Adam bit his lip, looking up at her.

"I know." He uttered, sounding tired. Suddenly, Adam turned and made his way down the stairs. Bianca watched, confused, as Adam skipped onto the pavement. Adam put a hand in his pocket as he began to strut away. "Come on. We're walking." He stated, almost as if it were an order.

"Oh." Bianca said out of realization. She composed herself and rushed after him down the sidewalk. "I, uhh…" She started, going to thank him. Adam make a small clicking noise with his mouth as his face distorted slightly.

"Let's just get this over with, okay?" He said through his teeth. Bianca kept up with him, but stared as he focused on the road ahead. There was a constant drip of sadness at the back of her throat as she looked at him and the way he reacted to her. He had once been so kind to her, so flirty. But then Bianca destroyed him. At the very thought of it, Bianca forced her tongue against her cheek.

"Okay." She said in a sigh. She kept her guard up and followed him all the way to the house in silence. Not a single word between them. By the time they arrived, the sky was a muddy blue. Their feet crunched the gravel beneath them, but it didn't muffle the voices in the Torres house. Adam paused, holding up a hand to signal Bianca to do the same. She ended up bumping right into him at the last minute command. She lost balance briefly and Adam's instincts caught up with him. He turned back, without moving his feet, and grasped onto Bianca. He held her forearms in his hands tightly before she could fall back.

"Whoa, I – "

"Sh." Adam grunted. Bianca looked up into his eyes for the first time in what seemed like forever. Their faces were close. They could feel each other's breath against their skin. Adam glanced back at the house, trying to listen in. Bianca just watched his jawbone as he turned. "Sounds like Katie." Adam observed. Bianca blinked herself back to reality, and cleared her throat.

"Yeah." She nodded. Bianca slipped from Adam's subconscious grasp. "Are they fighting?" She asked slowly.

"Stop training like this, you'll just get back in hospital!"

"I have to do this! You don't understand!" Drew fought back against Katie from indoors. Adam watched the shadows beneath the door. The light of the household glistened over his eyes and cheeks.

"Yeah. They're fighting alright." Adam said, breathing out shakily.

"I told him he shouldn't have gotten involved with Vince." Bianca murmured. Adam hated the sound of his name. He gulped. "Vince will get after someone until they come up with some sort of agreement." She stated. At that cold sentence, Adam's eyes flared with enthusiasm as he stared at the door.

"Elaborate." Adam grumbled.

"A trade. Something. A promise. Vince will stick to those kinds of things, but… I still hate him." Bianca explained softly. Adam raised an eyebrow. She was putting brand new thoughts into his head. Thoughts that only made he realize that Drew's problems could end. All he needed was insurance.

"Who wouldn't hate him?" Adam said absent-mindedly. At that, he made his way over to the door. He knew it was unlocked because Katie was there. Bianca followed him with a hurry. Adam swung it open only to be met with Drew shirtless and wearing his boxing gloves. Katie was there, crying. "What's going on?" Adam asked, as if he was clueless.

"I'm asking him to stop again, but, of course, who would listen to me, right?" Katie wiped a few careful tears from her cheekbones as Drew shook his head. He swung at a punching bag.

"I'm going to live like this until I'm safe!" He growled, as it swung back and forth. Bianca was standing behind Adam unsurely. Awkwardly.

"What is she doing here?" Katie asked with dark eyes. Drew turned around, and his face seemed to melt.

"Bianca." Drew greeted. He didn't want her here. Adam could tell. They all could. She had done this in the first place.

"Drew." Bianca returned. She glanced at Katie, then looked away.

"Well, care to take a seat, DeSousa? Tell us about what it's like to be in the gang out to murder your ex-boyfriend? Hm?" Katie asked sarcastically. Bianca bit her lip, looking down at her hands.

"I'll tell you what I can." She muttered. They were all taken aback by her gesture. Especially as she placed her phone on the kitchen counter, and took a seat on the armchair next to Katie.

"He's going to kill me, isn't he?" Drew whispered. Adam's eyes widened.

"Drew, don't say stuff like – "

"Adam! Shut up!" Drew retorted, glaring at him. Adam blinked, keeping in tears unbearably. Drew turned back to Bianca. "I hate this, Bianca. I hate this! I hate having to live in fear every second of my life! They're gonna kill me…" Drew sat himself down, and buried his face into his hands. Katie quickly rushed to his side, pulling an arm over his back. Adam's face twisted at his words. The pain in Drew's voice made him want to scream at him and slap him. "I'm going to die." He said. Adam bit his lip, shaking his head. He hated Drew speaking like that. There was nothing worse. Absolutely nothing than his big brother giving up on himself. Adam watched as Bianca's phone vibrated with a text message.

"Drew, nothing like that is going to happen…" Bianca trailed off, watching Drew with dread in her eyes. Adam slipped slowly towards Bianca's phone. His jaw tightened. It was a text from Vince. 'Bee, left my watch in your car. Pick it up sometime, k?' Adam was so tempted to throw the phone at the ground. Bianca was in contact with him still. No, she was working along side him. Adam knew that all already but he just didn't ever think about it.

"I'm scared of dying, you know… I'm so… I'm so scared." Adam heard Drew say from over his shoulder. Warmth spilled down Adam's cheeks as the tears silently fell. He wiped it away indifferently with the back of his hand. He raised an eyebrow, spotting a nearby black pen in a coffee cup. His eyes were focused. Onto the pen, then onto the phone. Then back again. What Bianca said… about the agreement. The situations played over in his mind. What could he do? Drew couldn't do anything. So, what could Adam do? He stared long and hard at Vince's number right by his caller ID. With a final twitch of his lip, Adam reached forward and grabbed the pen. He hauled his sleeve up and scribbled black digits onto his skin. His breathing began to pick up with the final few numbers. He dropped the pen back into the cup and unsteadily pulled his sleeve back to his wrist, hoping that no one behind him saw.

"Drew… Please… Please, believe me when I say that somehow this will be over. Somehow. Please." Katie pleaded softly to her boyfriend. Adam's lips shut tighter as he looked over his shoulder and the three people behind him came into focus. He couldn't stand them speaking like that. Acting like that. Drew and Katie crying. And Bianca without any good words to say. Adam grasped onto the counter behind him as he felt himself beginning to shake. He had Vince's number hidden under his sleeve and nobody knew. Adam looked up at the wall, just staring at it as his hands quivered softly like his knees. He licked his lips. His neck jolted towards the door. Adam knew he had to. He jumped away from the counter, and strode towards the exit.

"Adam? Adam where are you going?" Drew asked through his tears.

"I'm going out. I forgot I have to do a project with Clare. Tell mom and dad, okay?" Adam uttered, zipping up his jacket right to his neck. Drew, Katie and Bianca stared at him with confused expressions.

"But, Adam – "

"Later, guys." Adam thrust himself into the cold, shutting the door as quietly as he could behind him. Adam, now growing paler and paler at his own ideas, stumbled down the Torres driveway. He pulled his sleeve up, and searched for his phone in his pocket. He glanced around the blue street, noticing that nobody was around. He strode alone, and dialed the numbers onto his cell. Once he punched the last digit in, Adam bit his lip. He stared at the number. To call or not to call? He swallowed all his left over pride as his eyes reddened again. With every oompth of love he had in him, he pressed call. He whimpered as he put the phone to his ear. He was calling Vince. The one and only Vince. The one that has caused his family and friends such incredible pain. He walked onwards as the phone rung out. He trampled through the dirt, chewing on his lip and fidgeting with his sleeves. Then…

"Hello?" Came a voice in Adam's ear. He shivered.

"Vince." Adam grumbled.

"Who's this?" Vince asked, almost laughing. That laugh. Adam wanted to quarter it.

"Adam. Drew Torres's brother." Adam stated with a sense of pride. There was a cackle from the other side of the line. Adam shook his head.

"Drew Torres's brother? Man, you have got some nerve!" Vince laughed. It sounded like a congratulation.

"We need a talk, Vince. Now." Adam spat. Suddenly, the laughter died out. Adam was worried for a moment. His heartbeat became uneven. His sight suddenly crystal clear.

"I know a place." Vince stated.

"No, I'm picking the meet-up zone." Adam grunted, almost growling as he did so. Adam quickly described a covered area beneath a highway bridge. Somewhere he remembered passing quite awhile back. Vince said nothing for a moment.

"Deal. But I'm not going if I can't bring my boys. How do I know you're not bringing the cops?" Vince returned. Adam paused for a moment. Bring his boys? He gulped. They'd kill him.

"Don't kill me." It came out almost like a plea. Again, Vince just started cracking up.

"I won't kill you, Torres." Vince giggled childishly. Adam's jaw tightened.

"You have ten minutes." He ordered.

"Be there in five." The harsher voice said right back. Adam's lips curled angrily as he strode onwards. He hauled his hood over his head, shielding his face from the rest of the world. "Don't worry, we can wait." Vince teased with a smirk in his voice. Adam's neck tingled with disgust.

"Good." He hung up. Adam shoved the phone away into his clothing, crossing the road with his fists in his pocket. He wasn't sure what he was planning to do, all he knew was that whatever it was – it had to be done.

His knees were shaking heavily as he approached the tall cement bridge, tattooed with all kinds of graffiti and dirt. His heart began to race as he saw groups of men, and some women, crowded beneath it. There were cars parked around them. There were barrels on fire around them, giving the area some light. Adam sunk into the shadows, creeping up beside the bridge itself. He spotted Vince. With his hood over his head, a smile on his lips as he spoke to some girl sitting on the hood of a car. Adam clenched his fists.

"Vince!" He called. His voice broke at the end of his enemy's name. Vince glanced up, seeing the hooded figure approaching from the shadows. His smile faded. He held up his hand, and silence took over the underpass. Adam strode uneasily towards him, as the men and women stopped what they were doing, and focused on the scene. They were all in Vince's gang. All of them. The only one left out was Adam. The small sixteen year old who removed his hood and stepped past a fire. Vince could've laughed if it wasn't so fixed on the look in Adam's eyes. Adam halted as Vince pushed himself off a car, and made his way towards them. They stood still, several meters apart. They stared each other down. Adam was sweating by then, but tried not to show his fear.

"You must be Adam." Vince finally said.

"Leave my brother alone." Adam said in a dark voice. Some of Vince's gang laughed at the comment but all Vince did was smirk. "I'm serious. I'll…" Adam trailed off. His throat was burning again. He was appearing weak, and he knew it. "I'll do anything for him not to feel the way he does." He said. There were a couple sarcastic 'awws' from the line of people around. Adam tried his best to ignore them as he quickly wiped a single tear from his cheek.

"Hush, hush, now. Guys, don't be rude…" Vince teased, looking around at his gang members with such incredible authority. Adam bit the inside of his lip, staring down at a fire. Vince smirked, and chuckled once. "One hundred thousand." He announced. Adam looked up.

"What?" He muttered.

"One hundred thousand and your brother is safe."

"Forever?"

"For a month." Vince grinned. Adam stared at him as those around them began to laugh again. Adam's nerves began to build themselves up again.

"One hundred thousand per month? Are you serious?" Adam almost chuckled himself. Vince folded his arms, and nodded, with that horrid look of authority again. Adam's fists began to unclench as if he felt like he had lost already. "That's way too much, man." Adam uttered, raising his eyebrows as he did so. He noticed something in the side of Vince's jacket. A gun. The next sentence just flew out of Adam's mouth. "I'll call the police."

"Again?" Came the laughter of one of the gang members.

"Then I'll kill you right here. Right now." Vince grumbled, before smiling smugly. Adam's stomach dropped as Vince took another step forward. The image of Drew in the hospital rushed past his mind again.

"There must be another way to do things." Adam shivered, taking one step back. "I'll do anything for…" He backed up against a car, but Vince kept taking one slow step forward after the other. "For Drew." Adam finished. He saw the exit for the bridge just meters away, up a steep ledge. And another, behind another pickup truck. His eyes flickered between the two ways of escaping. And yet, his feet stayed put. He could make a run for it. But… he didn't. Vince stopped. Adam noticed he was grinning.

"There is one another way." Vince said slowly. Adam almost fainted at the sight of Vince glaring at him like that. He felt it in his knees that they would give up on him. Vine nodded towards the center of the pit beneath the underpass. "Follow me, Adam." Vince grunted, making a funny voice as he said Adam's name. As people laughed, Adam's eyes softened. He carefully followed Vince's footsteps towards the center, not sure what to expect.

"Stop." Said a girl to Adam. She had a sensual voice. Adam turned to glance at her. And a sensual body too, apparently. Adam wasn't aware that wearing that little clothing was legal in Canada. He stopped at her phrase, knowing that she probably has seen this all happen before. Adam wasn't ready to die. He wasn't even ready for his finals at school. Adam looked up, watching Vince pause several meters away. Vince slipped his jacket off, leaving him in a dirty white tank top. He tossed the jacket at one of his men, and rolled his neck, stretching. Adam nervously stood there, as Vince took a deep sigh.

"What's the other way?" Adam asked in a heavy voice. Vince smirked before turning back to Adam. He yawned, cracking his knuckles.

"A test." Vince stated simply. Adam watched as the members began to nudge each other, and their way towards the center where Adam and Vince were. Adam's eyes were trying to focus on the faces, but under the firelight he couldn't pin point them.

"What kind of test?" Adam asked, still glancing at the gang members. He heard footsteps approaching him. Adam turned back to Vince's direction, only to see Vince running at him. Vince brought back his arm, and swung. The boulder of strength collided with Adam's cheekbone. He was flung backwards, stumbling into the dirt. There was laughter all over the underpass as Adam's body crumpled to the ground. At the attack, Adam's breathing had instantly increased. His heart rate was like a machine gun, his thoughts were bubbling violently as a noise filled his ears. Adam felt for a moment as if he couldn't see. His hands were in the dirt, he was crawling. His face was red as if he was blushing, his blue eyes were searching around for anything. He couldn't think straight. He felt like his world had been turned upside down with the confusion of the hit.

Suddenly there were hands on his back, they hauled Adam back to his feet. Adam made a wheezing noise in his chest as his shoes touched the ground again and he became vertical. Adam could barely regain his balance. He looked forward, and saw Vince roaring with laugher along with some other men. Adam blinked harder, trying to bat away the blur in his eyes. A strong man had hauled him up, and was now gripping onto Adam's back, making him face Vince.

"Come on, man! Show me what you got!" Vince taunted, before laughing again. Adam felt the man behind him beginning to haul his jacket off of him. Before he knew it, it was in the dirt behind him and Adam was stumbling in front of Vince again.

"That's gonna bruise, kid." Sighed another girl from a car, looking down at her nails and examining them. Adam glanced at her then back at Vince.

"Be angry! Find that anger!" Vince shouted at him. Adam tried to digest the sentence, but his mind was too out of control. He wasn't angry, he was scared. But soon, that was all Adam could think of. The anger. The pain. The fear. Everything. He thought of Drew when Vince first attacked him. When Drew started screaming at night. The crazy in Drew's eyes whenever he's in a fight or is preparing himself for one. The hospital scenes. Adam's face was reddened even more as he continued to think about it. His eyes were swarming with tears. His muscles, they were tightened. The anger was building. "Come on, Torres!" Vince laughed, skipping over to Adam. He brought a fist up again and swung. His second blow whacked Adam right in the jaw. Adam stumbled backwards again, but he didn't fall. He grasped onto a car, almost collapsing onto it. Blood filled his mouth. His teeth glimmered red as he spat some blood out into the dirt. The laughter was all around him again. But the anger in him was near it's peak. Drew. Drew, Drew, Drew.

Adam turned to face Vince. His fists began to curl, as his jaw hung loosely as he gasped to breathe, but his face had become hard. He felt his shirt tightening as his muscle mass began to flex with anger. He thought of all the times when he wanted to scream. Then suddenly, that on it's own, made Adam lunge forward at Vince, who was still laughing. He brought his fist back, and charged it at his face. Adam's knuckles smacked Vince's cheekbone. His laughter was cut short, and there were some shouts from within Vince's gang. Adam was blinded with fury. As Vince buckled forward, Adam brought his knee up into Vince's chest. He just started hitting him. Adam was attacking him. So enraged. So frustrated. So angry. He was throwing all his punches into the back of Vince's neck. He then wrapped an arm around it, choking him upwards. That's when there was another yell from the gang. Adam glanced up. He saw guns. They were held right in his direction. His eyes widened as many began to load and prepare them, striding towards Adam. Adam quickly let Vince go, backing away. He put his hands up to surrender.

"Weapons down!" Vince coughed, now forward on his knees, in the dirt. He coughed out something. Adam watched in horror. Everybody was suddenly still. Nothing made a noise. The only sound was the cracking of the fire. Adam looked down at Vince. At what he had done. Adam's hands were shaking. His knuckles were decorated with blotches of blood. Adam had done this. He was the attacker in this situation. He heard Vince start to laugh, as he hauled himself to his feet with the help of two other gang members. Vince turned around to Adam, limping. The top of his white vest was covered it bits of his own blood, his face had a few man made cuts across his cheeks and forehead. But he was grinning.

"Vince… Vince, I don't know what – "

"Got into you?" Vince finished for Adam. He took a frightening step forward. Adam quickly took one back.

"Yes." Adam responded, gulping. He tasted blood and quickly began to feel sick. Vince smirked, wiping some blood from his chin and drying it on his shirt.

"Anger. Adrenaline." Vince answered softly. Adam watched him as Vince began to circle a barrel of fire slowly. Vince stared down into it. "Breathing increases. Heart rate quickens. A feeling of some sort of domination. Of being better." Vince reached into the fire briefly, taking something out of it. Adam almost warned him not to do so. Almost. It was an instinct. Vince tossed whatever it was into the dirt. "The feeling that you can't stop… Because you're a winner." Vince looked up at Adam. He smirked devilishly. It sent chills up Adam's spine. "You know all these feelings now." He stated. Adam felt his heart plunge at the accusation. Mostly because it was true. He licked his lips, still shaking as Vince approached him slower.

"Why?" Adam asked in a whisper. Vince just watched Adam in fear, like it brought him some sort of sick pleasure. "Why?" Adam asked louder through his teeth. Vince watched him. And grinned again.

"I wanted to see if you had what I'm looking for. What we're looking for." Vince corrected, glancing around at his gang then back at Adam. "You passed the test. Drew was never put to this test, but when he fought… he didn't have that feeling that you do. That frustration." Vince smirked at his own words. They were so true to the darkness in his heart. Adam was horrified to realize that he knew what Vince was talking about. He shook his head, not wanting to listen.

"No." Adam muttered softly. Vince grinned.

"We'll have a trade." He said.

"No." Adam repeated, shaking his head again.

"Your membership with us – "

"No!"

" – for your family's safety!" Vince cut past him, in a shout. Adam was about to protest again, but he stopped. He stared into Vince's eyes. This was the longest Adam had looked him in the eye without attacking him or looking away in fear. They stared each other down. Adam's lips were shivering. His body wanted to give in and fall backwards. His head was growing light and he was quickly becoming sicker and sicker.

"You… You can assure my family's complete safety?" Adam whispered. Vince grinned slowly, and nodded once. "You can promise that?" He asked.

"A promise is a promise, kid. We're not that dirty." Vince stated with hard eyes. Adam looked away finally, and watched the fire at his side. He bit his lip. For Drew. Do it for Drew. Drew's safety. To be back to normal again. To sleep in peace. For everything. For Katie's incredible stress. For his mother and father's sake. Adam was so sick he almost buckled over and threw up. But he didn't. He gulped hard.

"Deal." He uttered into the air, feeling his eyes stinging once more. Vince grinned, and stepped away from Adam to face the rest of the gang.

"Deal! He's with us! Torres ours!" Vince taunted. Adam shut his eyes tightly, as a soft gasp escape his lips just as his tears left his eyes. They were cheering. All of them. All the gang members were cheering him on. Someone tossed Adam's jacket into his arms. Adam took it and quickly pulled it to his face, dabbing it against the blood and tears. He tugged it in his fingers, feeling his own heart sinking. Suddenly, Vince reached forward with his strong arms, and hauled Adam's jacket away from his face. Adam bit his lip as he gasped for air again.

"No more crying, ay, Torres?" Vince grumbled, bending down to Adam's level slightly. He reached out and slapped Adam's cheek playfully. Adam jolted, sniffing and blinking. "You are… Torres. You are our Torres." Vince grinned, ruffling his hair. Adam coughed, shaking his head slightly. "This is a nice place you found, we've decided it's our new meeting spot for all gang meetings. That's a good first piece of work you've done, Torres." Vince commented, breaking away from Adam. He held onto Adam's jacket as he walked away. "Now, get out of here." Vince ordered. Adam blinked back at him. He wanted to move but he was frozen. Vince looked back, smirking. He shoved Adam's jacket back into his arms. "Get out." Vince repeated. Adam's body vibrated suddenly as he mentally forced himself to move. He scrambled for the exit, storming away desperately. "We meet back here tomorrow! All night from 5PM. Show up anytime you want. Understood? You better appear tomorrow, Torres." Vince called after him.

"See you later, Torres!" A group of girls called. All the gang members began calling at him with goodbyes. Adam was still shaking as he quickly rushed away through the dirt and blood. He didn't care if they were saying goodbye. He was traumatizing from what his hands could do.

"And, Torres!" Vince called back. Adam paused. He didn't want to look back. He just stopped in his tracks to let Vince know that he heard him. Vince smirked darkly, opening his bloodied lips. "Welcome to the games." He sneered. Adam's lips parted to say something, but he couldn't. He decided to keep on walking. He was frozen all the way home. Shaking. Wide, blinking eyes. Unable to focus, unable to breathe correctly. He was jumpy at every noise. But then, just when he thought he'd end up like Drew forever. It stopped. Adam became quiet.

He returned to normal though his eyes and face did not. He walked in those same careful baby steps that he always did. Only with blood down his jaw and cut and bruise on his cheek. But he kept walking through that icy weather, until he reached his home. He climbed a tree outside his window. The bark stung his wounds. But he managed to make it to his room, falling in shakily. Adam breathed out carefully, rushing out into the hall. He glanced around to see if anyone was there. He heard dinner being had downstairs, and rushed to the bathroom. He showered, almost bursting into tears once he was alone. But he knew he couldn't. He was scared someone who hear. So he kept deadly silent, then got dressed, and went downstairs.

"Adam." Audra greeted softly, with a smile.

"How'd your project go?" Adam's dad asked, patting his shoulder.

"Well." Adam responded, trying his best to grin. Drew's smile faded unbearably fast when he saw the cut and bruise on Adam's face.

"Where are those from?" Drew whimpered, pointing at him.

"Took my bike, fell off it." Adam said quickly, not wanting to scare anyone.

"Oh, sweetie, I'll get the first aid kit! That could get infected you know!" Audra got up from her seat, making her way to the kitchen. She ran a hand over Adam's shoulder as she passed him in a motherly fashion.

"Dude, you're so clumsy, I swear." Drew uttered. He was obviously afraid that Adam had been attacked. Adam took the seat next to him, licking his lips. He looked down at his food. It was late by then. Drew had showered, and didn't look like he was in a great deal of emotional pain. Katie was sitting silently across from Adam, eating sullenly. She looked so overworked. It was nearly 8:30, they must have had a late dinner due to Drew's outburst. Adam had left the house at around 6:30. A lot had happened since then. Adam shook momentarily at the thought. The guns, the fighting, the fire, the bridge. Vince. Too much had happened within those two hours. "You cold, man?" Drew asked, noticing the shiver.

"Nah, I'm good." Adam responded. Drew nodded, helping himself to more food. The younger Torres stared down at his plate. All that stress. All the pain Drew was in. All the trouble for Katie and the Torres family. It would end. Adam picked up his fork, with a hard look in his eyes. Katie glanced up at him, noticing the sudden facial change. As Adam shoved whatever food he could into his mouth. He remembered those last chilling words. 'Welcome to the games.'

_[A/N: So what'd you think so far? Reviews are much appreciated!]_


	3. Chapter 3

_[A/N: I've gotten a few reviews+messages about wanting more interactions between Adam and fellow students at Degrassi. My response is that I've already prepared lots of that for future chapters, just not in these early stages, so no worries. :)]_

**Percussions**

Chapter 3

School started at midday. Well, it did for Adam at least. He was so grateful he didn't take certain classes. But the second Adam woke up he received an 'urgent' text from Katie to meet her at The Dot just before class for lunch. Adam didn't mind. He wasn't sure what this urgent news could possibly be about. He arrived at The Dot to see that nobody else occupied The Dot except for the people at one table. Eli, Clare, Drew, Katie, Imogen. Adam raised an eyebrow.

"What's going on?" He uttered, glancing between them. It was an odd table.

"We have some pretty serious news. Bianca told me this morning." Katie said, watching Adam as he took a seat. All Adam could think of what that they knew. He could feel it in the pit of his stomach. They knew where he went and what he did last night. His brain was racing with all the things that they could say to him.

"Vince has recruited someone else to the gang. Someone young. Fresh-faced. Someone from Degrassi." Clare explained. Adam's nerves built up in an instant. He hid his hands beneath the table and grasped tightly onto his knees, yet showed no sign of nervousness on his face.

"And?" He asked softly. He licked his lips as Katie and Drew looked at one another.

"Do you..." Drew uttered. Oh no. Adam's gut clenched. He didn't dare to breathe. He was fixated on his brother, forcing the following words off his tongue. "Do you have any idea who it might be?" He finished. Adam felt his hands release and his muscles loosen. A cool wave of relief washed over his blazing chest, filled with anticipation.

"No." Adam sighed, wiping his sweaty hands on his jeans. His blush had hit a peak and was now fading.

"I'm scared, man." Drew whispered, staring Adam down. 'Don't be' Adam thought to himself, wishing so badly to say it to Drew. "What if this new guy is out to get me?" Drew asked. If Adam hadn't been so mortified by the events from the night before, he would've laughed. Instead he gulped and shrugged.

"What if he's not?" He proposed. Drew chuckled once, but morphed right back to his crazy face.

"Impossible." He grumbled, rubbing the back of his head, obviously stressed. Adam wanted to reach out and tell him that he was the new guy and had nothing but good intentions to Drew, of course. But he knew that he couldn't. No matter what happened, he couldn't let Drew know. Instead, he touched Drew's hand.

"Drew, everything's going to be fine." He muttered. Drew's jaw tightened as he looked up at his younger brother, sitting across the table. Adam held onto Drew's finger and gave it a small squeeze.

"Bianca's calling." Katie stated in a stern voice, staring down at Drew's phone on the table. She quickly got up from her seat and picked it up before Drew could. "Talk." She ordered with the phone pressed to her ear.

"I should go." Drew said to Adam with a nod. He patted his shoulder. The older Torres got up and followed Katie out of The Dot. Eli, Clare, Adam and Imogen sat alone. The air was full of all kinds of awkward.

"So," Eli began. "This whole thing is going to be a topic in the school paper, and a spin off for our school play, eh?" He muttered, drawing circles on the table.

"Apparently." Clare returned. Imogen shrugged, moving forward. She was staring at Adam. Adam quickly sunk back into his seat, feeling under the pressure of her leopard like gaze. But Imogen had much more on her mind. Adam could see it. He could see all her thoughts bubbling in her eyes. It scared him slightly.

"Strange, don't you think?" Imogen sighed. Eli and Clare glanced at Imogen, before looking back at each other questioningly. Imogen leaned onto the side of her chair, without breaking eye contact with Adam. His tongue was uneasy in his mouth, he kept fumbling with his hands. "A new guy in Vince's gang. Rare." Imogen's eyes widened briefly at the word.

"Yeah, definitely." Clare mumbled, watching Eli's hand as he continued to draw imaginary things on the table top. Imogen slid her finger by her jaw, then by her lips.

"I don't see why it's such a big deal." She said, grinning briefly when she watched Adam gulp. Then Imogen's smile faded. "Perhaps they just should build a _bridge_ and get _under_ it." She retorted, biting on the tip of her index finger. Bridges? Adam felt like he had been hit with a ton of bricks. His eyes widened. Imogen. She knew something. He didn't know how Imogen knew something, but he just did. Adam shifted in his chair, glaring back at her.

"Isn't the correct term, 'build a bridge and get over it'?" Clare asked thoughtfully, not wanting to cause a scene. She knew Imogen was very capable of doing something like that.

"Oh, I don't know." Imogen pulled back slightly. She tilted her head. "Is it, Adam?" Imogen asked. Adam's insides twisted at the question. Clare and Eli were confused, and just turned back towards each other, talking softly. Imogen pretended not to see. She just stared across the table, and up into Adam's eyes. He was stunned, scared even, but mostly just in shock. He felt like his muscles had been injected with a chemical that just froze him. He was stuck to his seat, petrified. Adam finally glanced up at Eli and Clare, who weren't paying attention, then looked back at Imogen.

"You know something." He mouthed to her. Imogen's lips curved into a smirk.

"Everything." She mouthed back, raising an eyebrow. Adam glared at her in horror. No. How? She couldn't. That's impossible. Sure, Imogen knows some really weird facts about people, but… this? How?

"Guys!" Drew thrust the door open. He was grinning. Widely. Katie was clinging to him with a similar expression.

"What?" Eli muttered, shocked at all the happiness.

"It's Vince! He told Bianca that he's not going to deal with me or my family anymore and it isn't a scam!" Drew exclaimed. Adam blocked out his voice as he continued. Everyone was talking by then, except him. Him and Imogen. Imogen sat still, staring back at Adam as she lifted her hands and clapped agonizingly slow. There was celebration all around. But Adam and Imogen were locked in a stare. Drew suddenly hauled Adam into a hug, talking into his shoulder. Adam subconsciously said all he could to convince him that he was completely unaware of this marvelous news.

"Horray. Later." Imogen grumbled, standing to leave. As she began to strut out Adam quickly felt himself pushing away from Drew.

"Listen, man, I have to go get ready for class – but…" Drew kissed Adam on the forehead again.

"This is the best day of my life." Drew whispered. Adam gulped. Was it? Drew ran back to Katie and kissed her. It seemed like ages since Drew and Katie had been affectionate and happy at the same time. Adam made his way to the door, quickly slipping outside, scanning the streets. Once spotted, Adam ran after Imogen instantly.

"Imogen!" Adam called, as his feet pounded across the street. Imogen stopped in her tracks at the sound of his voice. She turned swiftly to meet his eyes.

"Adam Torres." She greeted in a troublesome voice.

"What was that?" Adam breathed eagerly.

"What was what?" She shrugged, grinning at him,

"Cut the crap, Moreno! What was all that back there in The Dot? What is it you know?" Adam growled through his teeth. Imogen paused. She looked… intimidated. Adam breathed heavily, glaring down at her with dangerous eyes. Imogen leaned forward, close to his face, observing his expression and features. It all distorted as Imogen ran a hand up his chest. He opened his mouth to say something but Imogen moved forward, kissing Adam's neck. Adam blinked, staring over her shoulder at the street behind them. "Imogen?"

"This is just a diversion." Imogen uttered against his skin.

"Diversion? Imogen, I said cut the crap. Tell me what you know." Adam grumbled coldly, pulling her off of him. Like a boomerang, Imogen pressed up against him once more, giggly darkly against his shoulder. Adam's lips twitched with some form of frustration. Imogen sighed and played with the collar of his shirt.

"If I were you, I'd watch it." Imogen hummed. Adam paused, frowning at the warning. Imogen sighed again dramatically, and raised an eyebrow. "You're starting to sound like one of them." Imogen whispered, poking his stomach as she met his eyes again. Adam's gut dropped. He looked around, back at The Dot, viewing the celebration still taking place. He looked down at Imogen. He struggled for a moment, trying to control his sentences.

"What do you _know_?" Adam asked again. Imogen's face grew with a dark expression.

"What do I know?" She asked, playing the innocent card. "Oh, Adam. I know the fact that… Well…" Imogen's hand trailed down Adam's chest. "You're the new guy." She smirked slightly. Adam's cheeks reddened and he grabbed her wrist. "I know everything."

"Imogen." Adam grumbled.

"Just a diversion." Imogen reminded him softly. He felt his hands ready to crush whatever was in it's way.

"You…" Adam began, stepping towards her once. "You tell _no one_." He breathed. Imogen was about to say something clever but Adam cut past her. "I did this for Drew. For him. For his safety. I did this for everyone." Adam said with a pounding in his voice. Imogen stared at him, watching the emotions all over his face, she could pick out of characteristics and map them around her mind.

"I know you did. And that's exactly why I won't tell a soul." She said, slipping from his grasp. As she slithered away from him, she glanced back once. Just once.

"Imogen!" Adam called after her, irritated.

"You have my word." Imogen waved at him as she walked on ahead towards the front steps of Degrassi. Adam held onto a railing behind him, watching her leave. She had a power over him. She knew something nobody else did. She could hold it against him.

By the time class was over, Adam was once again exhausted. He didn't even have that many classes that day. Only four. He left down the school steps, ready for a nice warm drink back at home. But then he caught Bianca waiting on the last step, looking out at the road. Adam looked around, to see if anyone was around watching them. When he saw no one, he made his way over to her.

"Bianca." He greeted softly, taking a seat next to her. His presence frightened Bianca slightly, but she quickly realized just who was talking to her. She looked back out at the road.

"Adam." She returned, clutching her legs to her chest. Adam nodded softly, not knowing what else to say.

"You heard the good news right?" Bianca said, smiling faintly. Adam's face lit up for a moment.

"Yeah." He nodded, looking back at her. Her grin was so weak.

"So happy for him." Bianca murmured. She watched the cars passing by, and shook her head. There was something wrong. Adam waited for her to say it, because there was no way in hell that he'd ask. "But I'm still stuck in this shit." She said, fumbling with her hands. She then looked up into Adam's eyes. Adam paused, feeling some sort of Déjà vu. Those eyes had once charmed him into the biggest mistake of his high school life. The one thing that crushed him. And Bianca could sense Adam's pain right through the stare. "Hey, how about you come over to my place and I give you back that jacket of yours?" Bianca asked suddenly, breaking the eye contact for Adam's sake. Adam didn't see why she could just bring it to school and give it to him. That would be realistic and much easier. But Adam didn't know how to say no. He sighed.

"Sure. Right now?" He asked her. Bianca grinned slightly, and began pulling herself to her feet.

"Yeah, right now. To get it over with, as you would say." Bianca uttered, looking down at Adam, still sitting on the edge of the steps. She held a hand out towards him to help pull him up. But Adam just stared at the hand. He wasn't sure what to do. That was one of the hands that tore his shirt open and that hand was untrustworthy. Instead, Adam placed a hand on the railing and hauled himself to his feet. The rejection was a small sting. Bianca pulled her hand back to her side, glaring at Adam with an irritated look.

"Let's go." Adam grumbled, pushing past her to the parking lot. Bianca sighed heavily and turned to follow after him. She caught up with him at his side, and glanced at him. The bitterness on his face was something Bianca was getting used to. After all, she was the one who made him put his guard up like that. They got into Bianca's car, and began the drive back to her place. Bianca put the radio on to distract herself from the silence. There was a good few minutes of solid music, but no words between the two teenagers in the car. Not a word. They came across traffic and Bianca eased her foot onto the pedal. She sighed, tapping her fingers on the wheel impatiently. As she watched the sky outside, she heard a small chuckle. She raised an eyebrow, and turned her gaze onto Adam. He was grinning and looking outside as well. His cheeks were red and he was leaning on the car's window. Adam chuckled once more again, and shook his head softly.

"What is it?" Bianca asked softly. Adam looked at her. They made eye contact. And it wasn't the typical 'I hate what you did' eye contact. It was quite nostalgic.

"Come on, you have to remember this…" Adam reached forward to the radio. He turned up the volume, looking back at Bianca with a grin. Bianca's eyes widened at the sound of the song. _I see your pattern, and I can match it…_

"No… way." Bianca smirked, looking down at the radio, then back at Adam. They both smiled at one another.

"Just trace the lines on…" Adam started singing, with a laugh.

"No way!" Bianca repeated, shaking her head. She laughed, and couldn't believe they were getting along again. "Your paisley jacket…" She muttered along with him. Adam started giggling again. Bianca couldn't help but notice that laugh of his. It was pure amusement, happiness. All kinds of good things. Bianca had missed out on that part of Adam's life. All the good stuff. She cursed at herself mentally and tried to stop thinking about it. "Remember that one time when Sav was driving us from the concert?" Bianca asked, looking back at him. Adam chuckled slightly.

"I'm surprised you remember, you were completely smashed." He grumbled teasingly.

"No I wasn't!" Bianca protested, grinning. Adam looked at her, with an eyebrow raised.

"You so were." He retorted. The two of them chuckled again. Adam sighed and leaned against the window again. "Yeah, those were the good days." He mumbled. Bianca smiled unsurely, and glanced back at him.

"Why only those days?" She asked, laughing slightly towards the end of her sentence. Adam paused. He didn't have to think that hard about it.

"Well," Adam began. He didn't want to answer that so he shrugged. "Well… because, the week after that… You… Um…" Adam looked away from the radio, and out the window again. Bianca watched him as he trailed off. Her smile faded. She knew just what Adam was talking about. The week after that, she had outted him so horrendously. Hurt his feelings. Had him thrown through glass. Adam cleared his throat. There was a sharp pain inside his chest as he thought back to that hell-hole of a week. He stared out the window as the traffic unclogged and began to move swiftly ahead of them. Bianca turned away from him in utter silence. She placed her hands back on the wheel, took a slow breath and stepped on the pedal. Her conscience begged her to say something to him. Anything. She just had to say something. But she couldn't. She kept silence until they were parked in front of her place. Even then she was bothering herself to say something to him. They walked up the driveway. _Say_ _something_. Opened the front door. _Say something_. Stepped into the living room. _Say something_. Shut the door, and Adam stood around awkwardly, fiddling with his hands. _Say something, god damn it!_

"Adam." Bianca almost blurted out. Adam sighed at the sound of his name.

"Yes?" He responded politely. Bianca watched his sad slump of a figure peer around the messy living room.

"We should talk about that one week… after the concert." She started slowly. Adam pursed his lips slightly, and nodded. It wasn't a 'yes, do go on' kind of nod. It just his way of trying to hold his emotions in by seeming tough and easy.

"Well." Adam shrugged. He looked back at her briefly with a plastic smile. "There isn't much to say, now is there?" He half laughed, and turned away from her, walking about.

"There is." Bianca said from behind him. Adam's eyebrows furrowed, trying to keep his cool.

"What if I don't want to talk about it?" He asked. Bianca could tell by his voice that something was wrong already. She didn't know what pain she caused him. She didn't know about his self-harm, his struggle. None of it. Adam caught sight of a neatly folded jacket. "So, this is mine then?" Adam asked, picking it up. He inspected it to make sure it belonged to him. Bianca tried not to get distracted by Adam's questions. She wasn't going to let the conversation slip.

"What happened that week, I don't think we – "

"Did you launder this for me? It smells nice." Adam said thoughtfully, examining the inside of the sleeves. His gut kept clenching and unclenching. He didn't want to discuss that certain topic. He often referred to it as Judgement Week.

"Don't try and change the topic, Adam. We both know what happened that one day out in the hall." Bianca sighed. Adam's flinched sourly. The details were rushing back to him. Bianca had touched him a little too close. The memory made his insides twist unbearably like a key in a rusty lock. "When you were flirting with me and I accidentally…" Bianca paused for a moment. Adam did the same. He felt his teeth grinding over each other. He begged or her to stop inside his head. It wasn't just because he hated that week more than anything, but it was because he had a feeling in his ribs. That same feeling he remembered he had when he was fighting Vince. That same kind of anger. He didn't want it to persist, but Bianca continued. "I swear, it was an accident, Adam. I didn't mean touch your –"

"Bianca, I said don't want to talk about it." Adam muttered once more.

"Well, we have to eventually!" Bianca retorted, as if Adam wasn't making any sense. Adam gripped his jacket in his hands, as the feeling rose.

"No, actually, we don't." Adam grumbled. Brow starting to sweat. Hands start to hold on a little too tightly. Feet ready to run. Tongue pressed to inside of cheek. It was building.

"You were flirting with me and I touched your chest by accident, I – "

"Bianca, I said NO!" Adam shouted suddenly. His cheeks flushed again and his lips twitched. Bianca was petrified on the spot, watching Adam as he hovered over the counter, staring down at the smooth surface. "I said we're not talking about it so we're not going to talk about it, okay?" Adam said sharply through his teeth.

"Adam – "

"We're not going to talk about it."

"Adam, I know I hurt you a bit but – "

"You don't know anything." Adam said, shaking his head, cutting past her. Bianca's paused, sighing heavily as Adam turned to face her. Adam was containing his anger quite well so far. But there were no guarantees. The back of his mind played him a montage of how Owen and Fitz tossed him through that glass door, of when they beat Drew up right in front of his eyes. By then Adam's chest was almost vibrating as he forced himself not to yell at her. But then came that moment in his mind again. Bianca's hands grasping his shirt, ripping it open. Exposing him publically. _I've seen freaks like you on Oprah._ "You don't know… anything." Adam breathed, gulping hard, staring up at her.

"Adam." Bianca warned. Adam took in a quick breath as a bomb came crashing out of Adam's lips.

"You ruined me, and you ruined Drew. You know what, Bianca? You ruined everything!" He shouted, feeling an explosion within him. Adam quickly shut his mouth, now aware of what he had just said to her. He stared in horror as Bianca glared right back at him with something in her eyes that Adam remembered from that one week, months ago.

"You're an asshole." The words flew right out of Bianca's mouth. And after that, she couldn't speak. Adam had set the cards on the table, not all of them, but quite a few; and Bianca had sent hers right back. In shorter form. Adam's shaky figure turned suddenly, back to the counter. He grabbed his jacket. Bianca looked up at him.

"Say what you want." Adam muttered in a grumble, pacing towards the exit. It took Bianca a few seconds to realize that Adam was leaving. "Sorry for being whatever you said I was." Adam said under his breath, insincerely and bitterly. It was clear that Adam's poor little soul was actually offended in some way. But he was leaving. Adam was leaving all because Bianca couldn't say she was sorry. How could she? Say anything along those lines? Little did Adam know, he was the only person who's smiled at her for the longest time. And she didn't want to ruin it all too quickly and send them right back to stage one. Bianca felt her hands unraveling from her chest.

"Don't be sorry." Bianca said. Adam hated hearing that from her. He wasn't sure why, but he just never expected it. Like when the quiet kid in the class says something deep or hilarious and you pause for awhile, wondering if that really was him talking. Then the overall reaction afterwards is greatly exaggerated. Perhaps by a longing stare or a roar of laughter. Adam tried not to think about her sentence, and reached for the doorknob. But Bianca slid in front of him.

"Adam." She grabbed his hands, suddenly Adam stared down as the sudden contact. "Don't be sorry for anything, alright?" Bianca said, looking him right in the face.

"Why should I listen to you?" Adam asked sourly. That stung. Bianca never really felt one of Adam's retorts as strong as that before. He could avoid her all he wanted, say that she ruined things. But the way he said it, why should I listen to you, implied that he was referring to her overall. How Bianca was just poison. Adam felt a buzz in his pocket and reached for it. He pulled his phone out only to find that it was a text from Vince. "I should go." Adam said as he nervously slipped away from Bianca, clearing his throat. He glanced at the text._ 'Where you at, Torres?'_ Adam stared down at the words, feeling his heart rate increasing.

"Why? What is it?" Bianca asked, watching the look on Adam's face change suddenly.

"Something came up." Adam muttered, putting the phone back in his jeans. "I have to go." He said, looking up at her. He rushed to the door, going right passed Bianca. She raised an eyebrow and followed him to the exit.

"Uhh… where to?" She asked with rising suspicions.

"Somewhere." Adam responded, reaching for the door handle. Bianca moved in front of him.

"Adam, what's going on?" She asked, peering at him. Adam squeezed passed her to the door.

"Nothing, okay?" Adam muttered, thrusting the door open. Bianca held it open and grabbed Adam's arm.

"Not okay." She retorted, holding him steady. Adam's face fell into that same hard expression. He reached up, grabbed her wrist and took it off of him.

"Bianca. Goodbye, okay?" He uttered. Bianca stood unsurely at the door, watching Adam make his way down the drive. She didn't want to go after him. She'd seem too eager. Adam paused halfway down the drive, remembering that Vince still worked with Bianca too. Adam breathed a heavy sigh and turned back to look up at her. She was hopeful for a moment. "Where I'm going…" Adam began, "You'll find out eventually." He said shakily, looking her in the eyes. Bianca frowned, staring at him. He stared right back.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"You'll find out eventually." Adam repeated, nodding. He turned back down the drive, sneaking out onto the streets. Bianca shut the front door, and leaned against it. She was trying to put the pieces together. But nothing fit. Nothing. Adam strode to catch a cab, where he was dropped off two blocks away from the bridge so that he wouldn't raise any suspicions. Adam darted uneasily to the new gang venue, where he was met with that same crowd. The underside of the bridge was like a ditch, it sunk in and the bridge went over it. It was hard to see whatever was taking place beneath it. That's what everyone seemed to like about it.

"Hey, who's that?" Came a voice from someone in the gang. Adam looked up as he softly took his first few steps into the darkly lit area. A few faces turned, some people were confused, but Vince quickly stepped into a lit area.

"New guy, no worries." Vince said back at them. He looked forward, nodding at Adam. Adam nodded back nervously. He didn't want to be there, but he officially didn't have many other options. "Adam, welcome back to the Underpass." Vince extended a hand towards him. Adam reached out and shook his hand quickly. Vince grinned at Adam's shakiness, that still didn't want to fade away. Vince nodded at some other guys, sitting on their parked cars just a few feet away. "Meet some of the closest people in the family." Vince said as they made their way over to them. "This is RonRon, Hal and Dean." Vince muttered. They all grunted in response. Vince smirked. "Meet Adam. Drew Torres's little brother. His darker side." He shoved Adam's back, making him stumble towards the three bigger men.

"Hey." Adam said softly, clearing his throat.

"Nice to meet you." Someone said in a shady voice. Adam quickly forgot who was who, and just shook their hands. They almost shook him entirely as they greeted his hand with theirs. Adam looked back at Vince, who was eyeing some girl further away. Vince glanced back at Adam.

"See you all later." Vince uttered, following his own gaze back to the lady.

"Hey, enjoy!" One of the men said, laughing.

"What's he going to do?" Adam asked in a small voice. The three other guys laughed.

"What do you think he's going to do?" One smirked, pulling their hood off. Oh, that must've been Hal. His necklace said so.

"He's going to fuck her, of course." One said bitterly, lighting a cigarette. Adam flinched slightly at the phrase.

"Don't use foul language around the infant, RonRon!" The other said. Oh. So that was Dean, that was Hal, and the mean one was RonRon. RonRon was Bianca's friend, if Adam's memory served him right. RonRon tossed his cigarette into the dirt, stomping on it.

"Whatever, man." He muttered, shaking his head as he passed them. He nudged Adam, making him hit the car door shut. Adam sort of cradled himself. He was uncomfortable with his new surroundings and didn't want to ever adjust to them. Hal grinned, sliding down into the dirt, next to Dean.

"Take a seat, that's what the ground is floor." He suggested, kicking Adam's ankle. Adam jumped at the contact, making the two older boys laugh.

"You're funny, new guy." Dean grumbled, lighting a cigarette. Adam nervously sat next to Dean, placing his back against the pick up truck. His zipped his hoodie high up, and hugged his knees to his chest. He stared at the dirty car wheels in front of him. Just stared. He didn't know where to look and didn't know how to feel or act. Suddenly, a white stick flashed in front of his eyes. Adam blinked for a moment before realizing it was a cigarette. He followed the ligament to meet Hal's face, leaning past Dean.

"I, uhh…" Adam began.

"Don't say you don't smoke, new guy." Hal laughed, nudging Adam's hands with the cigarette.

"I really don't." Adam gulped. Hal and Dean just looked at him for a moment, completely indifferent from Adam's sentence. Adam cleared his throat. "R-really…" He stammered, looking away from them. The option hovered next to him for a moment. It tempted him. But Adam was a straightforward person. He waited until Hal's hand slipped away.

"Suit yourself." Hal sang softly. Adam felt at ease. They weren't going to smack him over the head or anything, which was a relief. The very smell of smoke made Adam's lungs irritated. He tried to ignore it, and pressed his back against the car again.

"What was your name again?" Dean asked suddenly. Adam paused for a moment. He didn't want to talk. "Aaron?" He asked, looking at Adam.

"Abraham?" Hal interjected, clicking his fingers. Adam looked from Dean to Hal and back again with a bewildered look on his face. He leaned forward slightly.

"It's Adam." He responded with a slight laugh. Adam placed his back up against the car again, looking forward. "Who's even named Abraham these days?" He muttered to himself, shaking his head. Dean and Hal laughed. Adam thought for a few seconds. Did that actually like him? He felt lightheaded around all that smoke, almost wanting to choke. His lungs were already rejecting the nicotine. Adam wanted to go home and have pasta. That was all that was on his mind.

"Yeah, who the fuck is named Abraham these days?" Dean grinned, looking up at the overpass. Hal shushed him. "Oh, sorry, little guy." Dean said quickly, patting Adam's arm once. Adam shrugged.

"It's fine." He said, bringing his arms across him again. He just sat there for a moment. Dean and Hal started talking. It was talk about girls. Adam's had no luck with girls. He kept his mouth shut and focused ahead. He watched the other gang members. Slyly chatting up the 'women' of the gang, who probably only came in and out once every few days. He watched men compared tattoos, their weapons, cars, everything that Adam wouldn't usually do or couldn't do. He bit the top of his knees, watching the scene around him and this new culture he was surrounded by. But… what were they actually doing? What was the point? Nothing was really going on. Adam turned sideways. "What is it exactly that we do here?" He asked in a whisper, not wanting to attract much attention. Just as Dean and Hal turned to him, with those same goofy smiles, they paused. The smiles faded. They were looking up at something. Something next to Adam. Then suddenly, he felt a boot to his side. Adam's neck jolted up only to be met with RonRon above him.

"Get up." RonRon murmured through his yellowing teeth.

"What?" Adam whimpered.

"Get." RonRon leaned forward, making Adam tense against the car. "Up." He said slowly. Adam looked around, confused for a moment. But Dean nudged him hard. Adam quickly gathered himself and hauled himself up to his feet. "Follow me and I'll show you just what we do." RonRon murmured. He had dark brown hair. Looked half Italian maybe. Quite pale, sickly, thin. He turned swiftly, moving towards the end of the pit. Adam followed himself carefully, not sure what to expect, since he was being led to the emptiest place of all. RonRon stopped somewhere, and sighed, patting another guy on back. The guy turned, grinning. Adam cringed at the sight of the grills on the guys dirty looking teeth.

"What's… going on?" He asked, with his hands in his pocket. RonRon looked back at him. He began to back away to the side.

"First day. First lesson." RonRon explained menacingly. He watched Adam with dark eyes. He looked like he had some sort of authority around here. Adam wasn't sure what. He didn't know there was a ranking system in a gang. The other guy removed his jacket and tossed it aside. He stretched, cracking parts of his body that made Adam feel uneasy. He blinked, cringing.

"Which is?" He asked, watching the opposite guy. RonRon chuckled slightly.

"Take off your jacket, Torres. You're just gonna learn how take a few hits, alright? It's not going to kill you." He exclaimed, shaking his head, muttering something under his breath. Adam watched him right back, and began to take off his jacket. He glanced at the other guy and threw his jacket onto the hood of a car.

"Do I have to?" Adam asked. Both the man and RonRon started to laugh. Adam's face didn't change. He waited for his reply with all the patience he had left. And it wasn't much.

"Yes, you have to!" RonRon said back with a sense of sarcasm and bitterness in his tone. Adam looked forward, as the other guy started to approach. Adam backed up, intimidated. "Wrong." RonRon commented quickly. The man stopped approached. Adam glanced up at RonRon.

"What'd you mean wrong?" He asked, confused. RonRon sighed.

"Amateurs." He muttered softly. Adam looked down into the dirt. "Never… never, back away." RonRon uttered through his teeth. Adam hated being told what to do. He despised it. But nevertheless, he looked back up, and waited. The man nodded once and held his fists up. "Try again." He said carelessly.

"Right." Adam sighed. He wasn't looking forward to anything that had to come. It was dark, the lights were nothing but fires, headlights and moonlight. The man took more steps towards Adam, one foot in front of the other. It made him so uncomfortable. He didn't even have time to think of anything. His knees were weak already. His head was light from the talk he had with Bianca and from the light that filled his lungs. He wasn't ready. The man got within a few meters radius of Adam and RonRon sighed.

"Wrong!" RonRon called. Adam grumbled something under his breath, before looking sourly back at RonRon.

"What now?" He asked in an itchy voice. RonRon grinned. He enjoyed seeing the discomfort that Adam had.

"Why are your fists at your side? Are you stupid? Were you raised by idiots?" RonRon asked, laughing. Adam's jaw tightened as he stared up at his opponent.

"No." He breathed, as his eyes darkened.

"Well then, act like you're intelligent and get your paws up, Torres!" RonRon blurted out. Adam ducked his chin slightly, leaning towards his opponent. Adam's heart started racing as he glared forward at the dimly light figure.

"Alright then." Adam grumbled in a dangerous tone. RonRon grinned.

"It's good that you're angry. Keep it that way. But remember, you're just taking hits." He reminded him a fatherly voice. Adam's shoulders raised as he brought up his defensive mechanism.

"And how does that go?" He asked in a shaky voice, hiding behind his own hands. RonRon didn't reply. He flicked his switchblade open and started toying with it, occasionally looking up at Adam and the bigger man. The man stared Adam down.

"Do nothing and try to stay calm." He said through his mouth of gold. Adam gulped as he moved forward again. What did he mean? Did taking hits literally just mean… get beaten up? Suddenly, after inching closer for just a second longer, the man darted forward. Adam swore he heard RonRon chuckle. It was a hit to the stomach. Adam felt whatever he had for lunch lurch slightly. Then another, and another. Adam was grunting, trying not to show the hurt, but he let out a whimper once or twice. It made RonRon laugh. Adam finally bucked forward in pain, falling into the bigger guy's arms.

"Wrong." RonRon said, grinning widely. Adam gasped for air, grabbing onto the bigger guy for help.

"Why?" He wheezed, blinking up at the tall figure meters away. RonRon just smirked. He raised his eyebrows threateningly.

"Try not to get into that position. Just gives your opponent an advantage." RonRon shrugged. Adam looked up at him, with blurry eyes. He breathed like he was in pain.

"What?" He hummed. The man brought up his fist behind him. "What kind of advanta – " The fist crashed right back into his stomach and Adam called out in pain. Then again, and again. All RonRon did was laugh. Adam felt choked. He was seeing nothing but feet and the ground. He was in a state of shock once again. He felt the ground beginning to fade, but quickly blinked to reassure him that he was still awake. He managed to look up, with much difficultly. Another hit. Adam grunted again at the back of his throat. RonRon's laughter attracted some other gang members. They too had began watching the scene with grins on their lips. It was amusing them. Adam was amusing them. He would be a joke by the end of the night. But what was new? He had always been a joke to everyone. The muscles at Adam's jaw and forearms began to tighten. His face began to turn to a shade of pink, then a red. His brow furrowed, he grunted again, without even being hit. He managed to move an arm back, and hit his opponent in his gut. It was weak. Terrible.

"Oh? Fighting back, are we, Torres?" RonRon asked with a grin. Adam felt a bubble inside him. That same one from when Vince hit him. The same one from when Bianca tried to bring up the topic of that one week. Adam looked up, his bottom lip was trembling and his hands could barely hold on any longer. RonRon bent over, putting his hands on his knees. He stared at Adam curiously. His brow was furrowed over his dark eyes as his lips hung slightly agape. He watched Adam. He was gasping and wheezing, trying to take in as much air as he could. The sixteen year old took another hit. He whimpered. "Getting angry?" RonRon whispered in an eerie voice. A smirk slithered onto his lips. Adam's eyes stung again. His body was rejecting the fight. The scenery. Everything. He couldn't handle it. Another hit, he whimpered.

"Stop." Adam breathed against the bigger man's arm. RonRon hid his face in his hands as laughter escaped his lips again. "Stop." Adam repeated, hoping the man would listen. No. Another hit. He whimpered again. The blood flowed to his front teeth.

"You can't ask for time outs, Torres!" RonRon shouted, though he was still smiling. Adam hated him. Right then in that moment, he decided that he loathed RonRon. It was stupid name, too. He was stupid. Adam's fingertips whitened as he dug his fingers into the bigger guy's arm. "The anger, Torres! The anger!" RonRon repeated, shouting with his hands by his lips, amplifying his words.

"I don't want t…" Adam trailed off, receiving another hit. He was exhausted of the pain. Hit after hit to the stomach and he was barely keeping his eyes open. Bruises were becoming cuts against his ribs. Adam was weak. Angry, but weak. Terrified more than anything. All he knew was that his body was giving in but his mind was on fire.

"You don't want to but you have to! Come on, Torres!" RonRon jeered, kicking mud at the brawl. Some splashed against Adam's shoes. His eyes were fixed on the ground. He pulled his arm back onto his opponent's shoulder. "There we go, there we go! Now we're getting somewhere, Torres! Come on! The anger!" All he could think of was those words. But Adam didn't want to. He was just Adam a few days ago. He was plain, simple. Didn't agree with violence if it was off his TV screen. But he had something. The anger.

"Torres, you're too easy." His opponent's fist was thrown back against Adam's ribcage. Easy? Easy? Adam's eyes widened as a shout raged from inside his throat. RonRon blinked in slight surprise as Adam suddenly pushed himself to his feet, lodging his fist into his opponent's stomach.

"Torres, you're just taking hits, but…" RonRon trailed off. Adam's forearms tensed and he just began throwing his entire body into each and every hit. Everything was running through his head like he was on drugs. RonRon pouted slightly, nodding softly. "Okay. Well, whatever floats your boat." Adam's eyes were wide and his veins were bulging. He was angry. He had suddenly become like a machine gun. He was hitting his opponent, who now had his hand up to shield himself. The smaller boy had hit him till he double over. Adam brought a foot up and kicked him backwards. His opponent stumbled back into a wall. He hit his head. Hard. Adam raged onwards, striding towards him.

"I'm not easy!" He shouted as blood came spitting from between his teeth.

"Alright! Torres! That's enough!" Came a bellow over the pitch. Adam froze. His little hands were shaking. His blue eyes were wide. His heart pumped nothing but adrenaline and rage through his system. He was breathing like a wide animal and his entire body resembled one too. Vince pushed his way passed RonRon and marched towards Adam, seizing his arm. Adam's heart raced with fear as he was met with Vince's face. Vince was analyzing him. He then looked down at the man, who picked himself up and started dusted himself off. He groaned and coughed a few times, spitting blood into the dirt. Vince looked up at Adam. And to Adam's surprise, Vince was smirking. Adam gulped, staying deadly still. Vince patted Adam's shoulder.

"You work well." He commented. He winked at Adam once, and then left his side. The man strode right past Adam, and patted his shoulder as well.

"That was good." He grumbled. Adam looked up. He saw himself. He saw his reflection in the car. The blood on his lips. His messy hair, red face, tensed muscles.

"Thanks." Adam responded absently. He stared at himself. There was something in the back of his head that made him feel… good. Proud. Something along those lines. The feeling frightened him. He felt something's breath against the back of his neck. Adam looked harder into the reflection.

"It'll take more than just that, Torres." It was RonRon. He grasped Adam by the back of his arm, digging his nails downwards. Adam's lips opened for a moment to say something. But he had to be careful. He didn't like RonRon, not one bit. He closed his mouth, staring into the reflection. "You've got a lot to learn to be like us."

"I'm not like you." Adam said back instantly. RonRon smirked, giggling slightly.

"You will be." RonRon let go of him roughly and marched away. Adam filled with bitterness at RonRon's words and certainty. RonRon didn't know Adam. He wasn't like that.

"Dude!" Came a yell. Adam's eyes followed the voice. He saw Hal and Dean. They were laughing and waving at him. Cheering him on. But Adam said nothing. He was starting to understand something about Drew. Drew actually enjoyed the fighting, didn't he? When he won. And Adam… Adam did too. What if he was like Drew in a way? But, Adam didn't just like winning. So, what if he was like RonRon? Or like Vince? Adam wiped some blood onto his shirt, and looked back at his small fanclub of two. His lips formed some sort of dark grin. He felt good.

_[A/N: Sorry if anything seemed rushed. I'm on a tight schedule from today onwards, so apologies in advance for future delays. But hey, once again, please do leave a review! I appreciate them all.]_


	4. Chapter 4

**Percussions**

Chapter 4

His messy pair of sneakers faded in and out of sight. He was falling asleep against the lockers and he didn't have the strength to care. Adam's ribs had been bruised due to the events from the night before. He was more than glad to realize that he didn't have to put on a binder over this wounds. He cringed when he flexed his stomach trying to sit up against the lockers behind him. The floor wasn't doing him any good either. He groaned, pressing his back against the surface behind him. Just as he tried to relax again, he heard shuffle near him, and a sigh. Adam peeled his blue eyes open, and batted them quickly with confusion.

Bianca was sitting there. On the ground. Next to him. He stared at her, bewildered, for a moment. Bianca refused to look at him. Her eyes were focused forward on nothing in particular. Adam shifted his back onto the lockers again. The two of them said nothing. They just looked elsewhere. Anywhere but at each other. Bianca chewed on her lower lip, reaching hesitantly into her pocket. She pulled out her phone, and began searching for something. Adam attempted to glance sideways but he figured it would be too rude. He fiddled with his hands, counting how many times the girls next to him said 'like' in their sentence. Then, suddenly, Adam heard something. He raised an eyebrow at the noise coming from his side.

"I see your pattern… And I can match it…" The song was coming from Bianca's phone. He looked up at Bianca's face as she looked blankly down at the electronic in her hands. Adam paused. Watching the way Bianca's lush lips began to form the faintest smile. Adam's mimicked hers as he turned away again. "Just trace the lines on… Your paisley jacket." Adam giggled at the lyrics for a moment. The memories. Bianca chuckled alongside him as well. Adam's grin widened. He looked back at her. She looked at him, biting her lip.

"Good song." Bianca muttered, nodding away slowly. Adam's cheeks flushed suddenly.

"Great song." He corrected in a hoarse voice. Bianca glanced back at him with a smile.

"It is." She agreed in a similar tone. Their eyes seemed to wander along each other for a moment before they looked away. Adam nodded off his grin until his face was nearly cold again. "What you said yesterday night…" Bianca began condescendingly. Adam's face turned to stone. He had yelled at her the night before. His bruised stomach dropped slightly as his mouth opened to apologize. "It's true, isn't it?" Bianca added in a softer voice. Adam licked his lips, looking up at her with desperate eyes.

"Bianca, I was mad, I didn't mean to – "

"You did." Bianca cut past him bitterly. Adam shut his mouth at the retort. Bianca sighed with some kind of flare. "You did." She repeated, "And you were right." Her arms folded over one another as she tilted her head downwards, watching the floor again. Adam didn't know what to say. He knew that either way Bianca wouldn't believe him. "But I didn't mean to ruin things, okay? I didn't."

"I believe you." Adam said quickly after her. As Bianca turned to look at Adam, even he began getting second thoughts about the sentence? Did he really believe her? Did he? He wasn't so sure. Adam looked away nervously, around at the hall.

"I'm glad." He heard Bianca say from near him.

"Me too." Adam returned absentmindedly. He watched as Eli nodded at Clare from down the hall. The ice was melting between the two of them at last. But then, as their arms met and they politely greeted one another, their eyes fell upon Adam. On the floor talking to Bianca DeSousa. Adam gulped as he watched their facial expressions change.

"Is that the signal that I should get going?" Bianca whispered. Adam huffed softly, not sure how he was supposed to feel about anything anymore.

"I suppose so." He grumbled, feeling for the locker behind him. Adam stumbled to his feet clumsily, then looked down at Bianca as she did the same. He reached out, grasping her by the palm of her hand. Bianca followed the limb up to Adam's eyes as he pulled her up to her feet. His fingers lingered over hers as they maintained eye contact.

"Thanks." Bianca uttered, as Adam fingers slipped off of hers. Adam looked away from her, down at the floor.

"No problem." He murmured, clearing his throat. That was the queue. Bianca nervously tore her gaze away from him and made her way down the hall alone. Adam hesitated before marching over to Eli and Clare, who were still watching him. "Hey, guys." Adam greeted in a low voice.

"Bianca DeSousa?" Eli began. He squinted at Adam as he spoke her name.

"We were just talking." Adam sighed, moving passed them. Clare and Eli glanced at one another, and chased Adam down the hall.

"She ruined your life." Eli reminded him. Adam rolled his eyes.

"She was horrible to you!" Clare added for emphasis. Adam paused and turned to face them.

"But she's trying not to be." He interjected, staring between his two friends. From over their shoulders, Adam saw Dave pointing to the clock, then waving at him to come over frantically.

"What do you mean?" Clare asked. Adam sighed, returning his eyes onto her.

"She's trying. And she never did until now. So that's all you need to know." Adam pushed passed them, making his way over to Dave as he popped back into the radio room. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a radio show to host." Adam glanced back at his bewildered friends and nodded at them.

"Whatever you say, Superman, but I wouldn't trust her if I were you." Eli warned, slowing his pace as Adam reached the radio room. Adam smirked, thrusting the door open.

"Luckily, you aren't." He sighed, before rushing in to the radio room. Eli and Clare halted down the door as it swung close. They froze their, confused all the same. Adam took his seat next to Dave.

"Show's on in just a few seconds, dude! Why the hold up?" Dave asked, adjusting the headphones around his neck.

"Sorry, man, okay?" Adam uttered, placing his headphones over his ears. Dave sighed, pulling his mic closer. They waited for Sav's queue. Adam sat there, staring down at his notes. He was completely out of energy. He didn't even want to participate in the show anymore. With the click of Sav's fingers, Dave jumped to the introduction.

"Hello, Degrassians! Dave Turner here!"

"Accompanied by yours truly, sir Adam Torres." Adam said into the mic with a slight smile.

"Sir? Sir Adam Torres? That's a big title. I didn't know you were knighted by the queen of England." Dave said thoughtfully. The crowd began to build outside the glass doors of the radio show room. Adam chuckled slightly.

"Queen of England? She's my homie, of course." He grumbled, toying with his papers. Adam wasn't feeling funny. Or happy. But his dark and lethargic responses seemed to be making everyone laugh. Half way into the show, as Dave begins to dedicate a song to Alli, the power cuts. That was the first time it ever did that.

"Uhh… The hell was that?" Dave grumbled, removing his headphones with a racing heart. Sav rushed out to the crowd, announcing something about technical difficult. People outside began to clear. Sav headed back in, looking confused and worried.

"Just a power cut, Dave. Calm down." Adam said looking around indifferently. Dave got up, making his way to wherever Sav was.

"Well done, Sherlock. But we're losing our fans. This needs to be fixed." He spat, obviously not having such a wonderful day. Adam sat back in his chair, sighing. He was too tired to care about the show. As the room emptied, Adam sat still. He heard a knock. Adam's eyes followed the sound to the glass doors. Imogen was there, holding her notebook up against her chest. Adam raised an eyebrow as he read 'Just a diversion'. He was confused. Then Imogen lifted her hand to show a cable. It was the audio cable. Imogen had cut the show's sound system.

"Imog – " Adam's voice rose by Imogen quickly placed a finger against her lips. Adam's voice cut at the command. The silent girl outside the radio room sighed and turned a page in her notebook. 'Nice work last night. Classy.' She giggled once, darkly, without even flashing a grin. Adam was plastered to his seat, horrified. He leaned forward, peering at her. Imogen shrugged, connecting the cable again. There was a high pitched screaming noise in Adam's earphones. "Jesus!" He shouted, scrambling to remove them. He tossed them at the floor and almost spun out of his chair entirely. "Ah! God, what the heck… what…" Adam covered his ears, squinting at the ringing at his eardrums. Dave and Sav barged back inside, staring at him.

"Dude, Adam! You okay, man?" Dave asked, rushing to his side.

"I think so. The headphones, like, screamed at me." Adam muttered, contorting his face as the ringing continued.

"Guys… the sound… it's back on." Sav said in a slow voice. They looked back up at him, both confused.

"What? How?" Dave asked. He looked up and saw that flashing sign to show that they were on air again.

"I have no idea." Sav said, looking back at him suddenly. "But, hey, you're wasting air time, guys." He told them, retracing his steps back to his part of the studio. Adam looked back up to find Imogen. But she was gone. And the fans were walking back in casually, as if nothing had happened. Dave carefully placed Adam's headphones back into his hands, watching him.

"You alright, Adam?" He asked slowly. Adam snapped out of his stare, and took the headphones from Dave.

"Fine." He responded, putting the headphones back on. The sound had disappeared. The two of them nervously looked back at their notes.

"Okay, sorry for the inconvenience guys…" Dave began, looking back out at the crowd filling the room outside. "Freaked us out. You should see Adam!" He half laughed, nudging Adam. Adam attempted to grin, but it turned out to only be faint.

"Yeah, I'm shaking." Adam said sarcastically, "And pale as a sheet of paper."

"Said the white guy." Dave coughed. Adam chuckled slightly, as the people outside began laughing along with them again.

"Thanks, Dave, love you long time." He said as he shook his head. Dave laughed again and ruffled Adam's hair.

"Love you long time, bro." He grumbled, signaling Sav for an audio change. "Now, back to some good music… Anyone want to hear the story behind this song and me and Alli?"

"Alli and I." Adam corrected absent-mindedly. More laughter. Dave rolled his eyes.

"Anyone who doesn't want to hear it, is just going to have to suck it up because I'm telling it anyway." Dave smirked, adjusting his papers. As the show continued, Adam was a bit out of it again. Imogen had showed up last night? How? He didn't even see her? How was that possible? Adam licked his lips, tracing the imprint of his handwriting along the page for the radio show. Imogen knew much more than Adam thought. She couldn't be trusted.

"Come at me!" Hal yelled. Adam's fists were up at his face and his eyes were focused hard. Night three. Adam received a hard punch at his forearms. The force tore them away from him, leaving his face exposed. Hal's fist collided with Adam's cheek. The younger boy called out, stumbling back and buckling over. RonRon rolled his eyes.

"Arms, Torres! Arms always up!" He shouted over Hal's taunting. Adam shakily brought his hands back up, sniffing and focused. His head was spinning from that last hit. "Knees!" RonRon added. Adam ducked and crouched at the command. His feet were clumsy. He was stumbling and unable to get a proper foothold in the dirt.

"I'll knock your teeth out, Torres, be careful." Hal breathed. Adam gulped. His mouth was dry from breathing so hard. Hal's jaw tightened and he lunged at Adam again. The hits were coming at his gut. And Adam was still bruised from the night before. He grunted, trying to back away from his opponent.

"Torres! What are you doing?" The voices were everywhere. And the anger was building. Adam growled slightly as he shoved Hal away from him. "Good, good, good… Remember the stance, Torres. Remember the moves." RonRon muttered, almost to himself. Adam's fingers twisted into fists as he pulled them back up to defend himself. It had been two hours of this crap. Of RonRon showing him proper fighting stance, hold to keep himself composed, how to push back. Adam was sick of it within fifteen minutes. He dreaded the sound of knuckles coming down on bare flesh. It made him cringe. But Adam kept his defense up with all the stamina he had left. And it was draining from him fast. Hal ran at him again. Adam grumbled a plea under his breath as his feet pounded the dirt in Adam's direction.

"Fall back!" RonRon ordered. Adam took one quick step backwards as Hal swung. The opponent brought himself to face Adam once more and pulled his arm back for another hit. Adam watched, nearly in terror, as Hal's arm muscles flexed and glimmered on its way towards him in some sort of slow motion. "Lean, lean, lean, lean!" RonRon shouted, making Adam's heart race even faster than it already was. Adam followed his commands. He leaned left to avoid the punch, then leaned right again at the second punch. He must've done five times at the speed of a viper. RonRon's lower lip hovered open at Adam's sudden incredible speed. Adam moved forward, smacking Hal's arms away. Hal was off guard and Adam threw a fist into his shoulder. Hal screamed. It didn't phase Adam. He leaned to the side, and threw an uppercut, diagonally to the left up. Adam's knuckles slammed the bottom of Hal's jaw, snapping his head back. Blood spurted into the air from Hal's mouth as tumbled to his side.

"Fuck!" He shouted, grasping his face. Adam nervously licked his lips as Hal collapsed onto someone else's car, grasping onto it with one hand. "God damn, Torres!" Hal grunted. But, he was laughing slightly, even through the drops of crimson leaking from his teeth. Adam blinked, not sure what else to do.

"I, umm…" Adam began to apologize, going to help him up.

"Torres, Torres, Torres!" Dean laughed from the side, clapping his hands above his head. RonRon scowled at him in some sort of disgust. "Well done, little man!" Dean said, winking in Adam's direction. Adam smiled briefly.

"Yeah, thanks, man." Adam returned. He looked back down at Hal, extending a hand to him. "So sorry, dude." He said in a worried voice. Hal took Adam's hand and pulled himself back up to his feet. He was off balance entirely. Hal, the bright spirited fighter, just shook his head and smiled.

"Nah, it's cool." He said through his bloodied teeth. Adam sighed in relief and looked back at RonRon. His trainer wasn't satisfied. RonRon's arms were folded and his muscles were flexed. His firm lips were pouted and his eyes were the same old hard eyes. He pushed his way passed Dean.

"It was fine." RonRon said. He stormed to Hal's side and grabbed him by the back of his shirt roughly. "You good?" He grunted, lacking any form of emotion. Hal just smiled.

"Yeah." He uttered, looking at Hal like there was a blinding light behind him. RonRon patted him once again, and nodded towards where Vince's car was.

"Good. I'll go make reports to Vince." RonRon said, turning in the dirt so that there was a dust cloud as his heels. Hal nodded, wiping some blood from his chin. Adam was exhausted, and his knuckles were killing him and swelling.

"Torres!" Hal called from a car. Adam looked up at his figure, dimly lit by a fire from afar. Adam nodded at him, and began to make his way over. Hal held out a flask towards him. "Have a drink, man. It's been a tough night." He grumbled, thrusting it into Adam's hands.

"Thanks, man. It really has. And I'm real sorry about, uhh…" Adam gestured to Hal's face.

"It's alright, it's the norm." Hal shrugged. Adam gratefully twisted the metal cap off and put it to his lips. The substance entered his mouth and he quickly swallowed. But his eyebrows furrowed at the taste and he coughed, spluttering it out onto the dirt. Hal cracked up from the driver's seat, throwing his head back as he did so. "Ugh, that's –" Adam choked again, leaning over into the dirt. He coughed several times, gargling even. All Hal did was giggle with his hands at his face. "Jesus! Dude! I had a mouthful of that crap!" Adam exclaimed, spitting whatever else was left on his tongue onto the ground. He winced up at Hal who looked back at him with a wide grin.

"I take it you don't like whiskey?" He asked hoarsely, almost about to start laughing again.

"No! I hate it!" Adam retorted, tossing the flask upwards. Hal quickly reached out and grabbed it before gravity pulled it to the ground. "And I'm sixteen, you know. I don't drink. Or smoke. Okay?" Adam reminded him, spitting again. Hal chortled, placing the flask down on the dash.

"You are such a lightweight, it's incredible." He muttered, looking down at Adam with a grin. Adam wanted to slap him. But he already did enough damage to his face for the night. Adam was frustrated enough, but Hal meant well. He was a good person. Kind of.

"Idiot." Adam uttered inaudibly, followed by a heavy sigh.

"Hey! Main bitch!" Came a yell. Adam frowned at the call, and turned his head in it's direction. It was RonRon, with Vince by his side. And they were looking straight at him from the center, and laughing like animals. "At least he knows his name." RonRon said aside to Vince. Vince smirked slightly and shook his head. Adam looked cluelessly between the two of them.

"Get your ass over here! Come on!" Vince shouted, waving at him to come over. Adam hated the center of the pit. It terrified him. But he pulled himself to his feet and made his way through the crowds of taller, ruined people. There was a thick stench of wasted youth in the air. As Adam walked by the firelight, RonRon moved away. "Attention, please, fellow masterminds!" Vince teased. Adam could hear laughter around him at the sentence. He smelt alcohol on Vince's breath. It made him cringe inwardly. Vince held up a hand. "Attention!" He repeated, a bit louder this time. There were goosebumps along Adam's skin as the pit began to fill with the most odd silence. Vince gestured to Adam suddenly, making him feel vulnerable. "This guy…" He began, grinning slightly. He looked back at the crowds in the pit. "He's a natural." He stated, placing his hands behind his back. Adam's body loosened. He felt the fear in his heart began to melt away. Vince wasn't going to attack him again. Thank god.

"He's okay." RonRon uttered to someone else. Adam's jaw tightened with hatred. Vince looked back at Adam, then back at the crowd.

"I say that he rolls with us for the bigger projects, yeah?" Vince announced. There was a brief cheer in agreement. Adam raised an eyebrow. Bigger projects? He didn't know there were bigger projects outside of the pit. Adam looked around, back at Dean and Hal, confused. They just smirked at him. "They want you, Torres." Adam heard Vince's voice close suddenly, and it made him jump. Adam turned back to see Vince looking over his shoulder at him. "The ladies will want you, for sure." He laughed, looking back at the crowd. There was laughter, and agreement once more. Adam was lost for a moment but felt a small grin at his lips as Vince chortled.

Despite being insecure with his surroundings, Adam was enjoying the attention. He didn't mind being praised like was refreshing. And the crowd… they were appreciating him. It was new. Was Adam enjoying the night? Was he actually warming up to a few things? He gulped hard, trying not to think about it.

"What ladies?" RonRon coughed from the side. Laughter again. Hatred again. Vince giggled as well.

"Those! Our ladies!" Vince said, pointing to the group of girls standing together by a group of cars. "Ladies, meet Adam. Adam, meet the ladies." There were calls and wolf whistles all around as Adam looked up at them. They waved to him, speaking in air-like voices. It made Adam's cheeks blush as Vince put an arm over him. "Our ladies." He muttered, leaning towards him with a smirk. "_Your_ ladies." There was an even louder wolf whistle as Adam laughed slightly, looking out to them. As Vince left his side to continue on another topic, Adam's heart stopped. And suddenly life was in slow motion. Because there, in the group of girls behind the barrel of fire, was the one and only Bianca DeSousa. And she was staring right back at him.

Her eyes were wide with horror and her face was distorted like she had seen a ghost. Adam glared at her as he felt Vince's arm leave his shoulder, leaving him to stand alone. Bianca tried to say something but she couldn't. Her tongue was in a knot and her entire body had temporarily frozen. Adam gulped, tightening his fists. He tried looking elsewhere but it was no use. He could feel her eyes on him, and then pulled Adam's back to meet hers. Bianca took a step forward and Adam instinctively took an even bigger step back. Bianca paused, glancing down at Adam's even, then back up at him. Her eyes were lit up in the fire, but their message to Adam had been muted by his thoughts. He shook his head slightly, and began to move away. Bianca wanted to rush after him but there was a hand on her shoulder from one of the other girls, holding her back, saying something to her. Bianca watched as Adam disappeared from sight. She wondered if that was even Adam at all. If it had all been just in her imagination. But Adam was running back to Dean and Hal, and grabbed his jacket from the back of their car.

"You alright, man?" Hal asked, holding an icepack against his chin.

"I need to go." Adam stammered, looking up at the exit.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Chill out! You're a mess, man! Here, I'll drive you to your place." Dean suggested watching Adam as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"You will?" Adam asked, bewildered. He looked back down at Dean. His eyes were pleading. He was actually worried about Adam's state and Adam could sense it. "Thank you." Adam breathed, rushing to the passenger's side. He slithered next to Dean, and zipped up his jacket. "Go, go, go, go." He muttered, sinking in his seat.

"Alright, alright, I'm going!" Dean returned, now sounding just as stressed out as Adam was. They drove out into the streets, and Dean followed Adam's directions in his drowsy state. Adam stared at him as he drove. Dean's hands were sweaty on the steering wheel and he kept looking in the rear view mirror. Adam stared at him as he drove. Dean's hands were sweaty on the steering wheel and he kept looking in the rear view mirror. He was a handsome young man with a very clouded mind. Adam wondered what he could've been doing with someone like Vince. And Hal, too. But Adam had worse things on his mind than wondering why someone like Dean or Hal ended up in this mess. Bianca had seen him. His heart sunk every time he thought of the expression on her face when their eyes met. Adam placed his face in his hands until Dean pulled up outside Adam's house. "Torres?" Dean's voice faded in and out of Adam's head. He shook Adam's shoulder. Adam peeped up from his hands at the older boy.

"You can call me Adam, you know." He murmured uselessly.

"Sorry, Torres - I mean, uh, Adam." Dean stammered. He looked like he had seen a lot, Dean. His brow was always furrowed like he was thinking really hard about something.

"Damn it…" Adam uttered when he saw that the lights were still on in the living room.

"This is your house? You never said you were loaded!" Dean laughed, peering at the Torres house.

"I'm not." Adam chuckled as pulled himself out of the convertible. He walked around to the driver's side, constantly glancing back at his house and the silhouttes inside it. Adam wiped his hands on his jeans and looked down at Dean. Dean looked back at him, his greasy hair was flopped over his forehead. His sleeves were pulled up, revealing the tattoos and his shoulders, and knuckles. His bruised jawbone was so emphasized and square that Adam wondered if he had ever been a model for one of those really hipster magazines. Dean actually reminded Adam of someone from a book he read once. A guy called Sodapop from the book called The Outsiders. If Adam's parents saw him with someone from Vince's gang, they'd kill him. Adam extended a hand towards Dean. The older boy shook it, though his eyes were still worried.

"Thanks for the ride, Dean. Really." Adam said, smiling slightly. Dean nodded for a moment before suddenly yanking Adam's hand forward, making him lunge down towards Dean. Dean grabbed the back of Adam's head and pressed his lips against his cheek briefly. Adam was taken aback as Dean shoved him away, sending him stumbling onto the sidewalk. When Adam regained his balance he stared at Dean in a daze of confusion.

"Take care of yourself, Torres." Dean said in a harsh voice. Adam blinked as Dean focused on the road again and revved his engine. He sped off without another word. Adam stared at the car as it disappeared around the bend. Perhaps it was how Dean did things. He was awfully friendly anyways. Adam wasn't sure whether or not he should be flattered or concerned. He then felt a buzz in his pocket. Sighing, he checked the caller ID. Of course. It was Bianca DeSousa. Adam's lips sealed tighter, staring down at the name. He switched his phone off, turning towards his house. His blue eyes were hard. He was just as terrified as he initially was, but he felt stronger. And these bigger plans Vince had for him, what were they? Surely they wouldn't have him to their dirty work, like, killing people or something... Surely... Right?

_[A/N: Thanks for the reviews, keep 'em coming, I appreciate them all! Are you excited for chapter 5?] _


	5. Chapter 5

**Percussions**

Chapter 5

Adam stood in front of his locker. He stared blankly into its vibrant walls, tracing the spines of his books over and over, but never processing their titles or authors. He felt just as drained as he did the morning before. His body didn't ache as much though. He lost consciousness for a moment but quickly regained it when he bumped his forehead on the side of his locker door. Adam blinked himself back to full consciousness. He shook his head then rubbed his eyes. Yawning, he shut his locker and stumbled back into the center of the hall. But as everything came back into focus, he spotted a figure staring at him. Bianca. Her face distorted at the sight of him. She knew that feeling of being tired like that. Of being used and abused. They stared at one another, knowing exactly what was on their minds. They saw each other last night. In the strangest place of all. Bianca started approaching him. And Adam, with a concentrated look in his eyes, did the same.

"Bianca." He greeted through his teeth.

"Adam, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing?" She whispered, wrapping her fingers around his arm like she began chained to him.

"I'm doing this for everyone." He returned harshly.

"You're going to get yourself killed!" She exclaimed. The two of them looked over their shoulders, to see if the sentence attracted any sort of attention. Adam turned back to her.

"I'll be fine!" He said firmly. Bianca looked up at him with a dangerous look in her eyes. Something Adam hadn't seen before. Emotions.

"Adam." Bianca gulped. "You don't know what you've gotten yourself into." She breathed, squeezing his arm tighter. Adam glanced down at her hand, then back up at her.

"You're right, I don't… But I've made my decision." He muttered, running his hand over hers. Bianca looked down at the gesture. "Come on, let's talk about this elsewhere." Adam grumbled, pulling Bianca down the hall. He checked the classrooms until he found an unoccupied one. They rushed inside, and Bianca locked the door.

"What were you thinking? Are you an idiot?" Bianca asked, finally not having to whisper.

"I'm doing this for everyone else's sake! I told you!" Adam replied, rolling up his sleeves.

"Adam! Do you have any idea how dangerous this is?"

"If it's so dangerous then why are you a part of it?"

"Because I don't have a choice!" Bianca shouted over him. Her breathing began to slow as she stared at him with red eyes. Adam stared back. Again, they said nothing for a while and just watched each other. Adam tossed his jacket onto the top of table, with a smack. Bianca jumped at the noise.

"Well that makes two of us." Adam grumbled, folding his arms. Bianca licked her lips nervously.

"You do have a choice." Bianca protested softly.

"I don't!" Adam said back, glaring at her. Bianca had sparked something inside of Adam in that moment. And that look in Adam's eyes right then, it scared her. She watched Adam's face of conflicting emotions as it began to settle. He huffed softly and ran his hands over his face. Bianca pushed her tongue against her cheek, watching Adam as he took a seat, shutting his eyes. She made her way passed a row of desks and took a seat next to him. He refused to look up at her face after his outburst; he looked up at the windowsill, tracing the edges with his drowsy eyes. "What does Vince mean by 'bigger projects'?" He asked in a warn-out voice, placing his elbows on his knees. He slouched forward, watching the rain outside sliding down towards the end of the window. It piled up there, drop after drop, until it spread out towards the edges. Bianca chewed on her nails, avoiding the question in her own way. But as Adam started tapping his foot impatiently, Bianca finally sighed.

"Adam… This gang thing, it isn't just a few fist fights… You understand that, right?" She asked. She was hiding something and any idiot could tell. Adam's jaw tightened.

"What projects?" Adam persisted, darker. Bianca looked down at the floor, trying to form her sentence as quickly as possible.

"Vince sent out a text last night when I got home." She said, reaching into her bag. Adam glanced at her briefly to watch her pull out her phone, then he looked back at the windowsill. Bianca sifted through her text messages. "Tonight…" She sighed, finally finding the text she needed. "Tonight, you're… Adam, you're robbing someone." She said with a plunge. Adam's eyes widened and his head snapped in Bianca's direction.

"What?" He breathed. Bianca held up her phone.

"You're robbing someone tonight, Adam, and…" She trailed off as Adam snatched the phone right out of her hands. She watched as Adam's eyes scanned over the pixelated words. 'Tomorrow night Torres rolls with us. Simple robbery. He's got good men on his side. – Vince.' Adam's stomach dropped and his brow furrowed.

"A robbery?" Adam mouthed. Bianca took the phone from him, but Adam's gaze remained just as it was. "From where?" He asked. Bianca shrugged.

"A store, person, I don't know." She murmured. Adam stared at the wall blankly, with a thousand scenarios running through his mind.

"I can't." He said finally. Bianca sighed loudly.

"You have to." She grumbled.

"I can't." Adam repeated, shaking his head firmly.

"Don't you get it?" Bianca asked, getting to her feet, marching towards him. "You said it yourself; you don't have a choice!" She exclaimed, walking into his line of vision. Adam stared at her. His fingers were shaking behind his back. His blue eyes wanted to close on him and never open up. He gulped.

"Can I have a moment? I… I need to clear my head." He said in a small voice. Bianca shrugged.

"Whatever floats your boat, Torres, seeing as you think you can basically do whatever the hell you want nowadays." She spat, folding her arms. She strut passed him, on her way to the door. Adam slowly sat himself down, staring at the wall in front of him. He was grasping his chair, taking his emotional frustration out on it. "You know, when Vince and I were together… It reached a point where I just felt nothing anymore. It was weird." Bianca said as she made her way passed the rows of desks. "He's a hunk of junk, you know. But… people like RonRon still give the guy a chance." As she spoke, Adam brought his face into his knees, and pulled his arms over his head. He dug his nails into the back of his skull.

"Not sure why," Bianca shrugged, reaching out to the door. "RonRon says there's stuff about him we don't know…" She looked back at Adam as she unlocked the door. She paused. Adam was buckled over, not moving. Bianca watched as Adam tugged at his hair. There was pressure on him. An invisible pressure that you couldn't touch. Bianca licked her lips, looking back at the doorknob. She clicked the lock shut once more, and turned back to Adam. She strolled through the tables, and hesitated by Adam's side. She felt awkward. Not sure what to do. "You, uh... You okay, Torres?" She asked with a cough. Bianca slid into the chair next to Adam, but said nothing more. She waited.

"I'm not a criminal." Adam said in a muffled voice. Bianca bit her lip and watched the rain against the window, just like Adam had done earlier.

"You'll come to find that many people in Vince's group aren't criminals either, Adam." She told him, wanting to reach out and comfort him somehow. But she wasn't sure what would soothe him.

"Like Dean?" Adam asked. Bianca grinned slightly, and nodded.

"Like Dean." She repeated with a soft smile. Adam pulled himself from his knees, chuckling in a low voice. Bianca was relieved to find that there were no tears down his cheeks, nor any in his eyes. But there was a ghost of anger and frustration on his face. Adam looked up at Bianca, smiling through his shattered persona. She smiled right back at him. "Hey, if you're upset I can stay here with you for awhile. Class isn't that important." She shrugged, watching Adam fumbling with his hands.

"Nah," He said, shaking his head, "You should go ahead, I'll be fine. Just trying to… take everything in. I'm committing offenses tonight." Adam murmured, almost sarcastically. Bianca smiled weakly at him.

"Whatever you say." She stood, straightening her shirt. Adam stared out the window again as Bianca made her way back to the door. "Be safe, okay?" She murmured as her fingers grazed the door handle. Adam grinned lethargically.

"Yeah, you too." He murmured. Bianca unlocked the door, opening it to the fresh air in the hallway. "Thanks, Bianca." He said from the back of the class. "You want to go Vince together later?" Bianca paused at the doorway, then felt herself smiling slightly.

"Fine by me as long as I drive." She sighed. Adam grinned slightly. "Later, Torres." Bianca said, slipping out into the hall. The door shut and Adam sighed heavily, sinking in his seat. He was robbing someone, or something, tonight. He wasn't keen on leaving the classroom. In fact, Adam was petrified for an hour before getting the courage to move out to his next class. But Clare came rushing to him before he even had the chance to step into the classroom.

"Adam. It's Eli." She whimpered grabbing his hand.

"Eli? What? What do you – " Clare tugged Adam away from the class, dragging him down the hall. "Clare!" Adam grunted as Clare pulled him towards the nurse's office. Adam raised an eyebrow at the sign. "Clare! Okay, before you dislocate my shoulder any further would you care to tell me just what the heck is going on?" He asked, squinting again as Clare tugged his harder. Adam skidded into the nurse's off, almost spinning off balance as Clare let go of him. Adam turned around, with his hair in a right mess, and was suddenly horrified. "Eli?" Adam breathed, looking down at the figure slouched in a chair with the nurse at his side. He was bleeding above his eyebrow and his arm was wrapped up in a white cast, covered in blotches of red. "Eli?" Adam repeated, rushing to his best friend's side. As he stared Eli in the face, he saw fear in his eyes. But a smile on his lips.

"Where've you been, man?" He asked in a weak yet playful voice. Adam looked up at Clare, who had a hand hovering over her mouth.

"What happened?" Adam asked. He hated seeing Clare like that. Even if she wasn't dating Eli anymore, any fool could tell that some feelings never do fade. After watching Clare struggle to look at Eli, Adam finally realized something. It wasn't a 'what'; it was a 'who'. Adam's face seemed to melt at the thought. Clare knew Adam had figured it out.

"Fitz is back." Clare uttered.

"No." Adam said instinctively. Oh, how those weeks rushed back into his mind. Adam brought his hands to his face, grasping his hair.

"Adam! Adam, don't think about it." Clare said urgently, going to his side. She ran a soothing hand over his back.

"Why?" Adam grumbled. "Why is he here?" He strained. Clare tried to say something but she didn't know how.

"Seems like he's lost faith in God. As we all do every now and then." Eli murmured, though he sounded choked. Adam looked up at Eli as the nurse dabbed some blood running down his temple. "As you can tell, him and Owen are closer than ever. And both out for some good old fashioned fun." He gulped, before coughing once or twice. The door swung open and Principal Simpson came in.

"Jesus, what happened?" He asked, pushing both Adam and Clare aside to get to Eli. They both willingly cleared the area for him.

"Nothing. I fell." Eli stated. The nurse paused for a moment, but continued to tend to Eli's wounds. Adam's eyes widened.

"What?" He breathed.

"Yeah, it was a bad fall. I saw it myself." Clare chipped in. Adam glared at her, then back at Eli, then back again.

"What?" He repeated. Simpson sighed, dusting off his suit.

"Well then." He grumbled, making his way back to the door. "It's a relief to see that this was an accident, but once again, be more careful, Mr. Goldsworthy. You are a clumsy kid, you know." He said, sliding between the doors. They swung shut and silence took over the office. Adam stepped forward, shaking Eli's shoulder.

"What was that about, eh?" He asked ferociously.

"Very Canadian of you, eh?" Eli mimicked with a grin. Adam shook his head in frustration.

"You lied to Simpson! It was Fitz and Owen! Everyone here knows it!" Adam exclaimed. Eli leaned forward towards his friend. The nurse backed away, letting Eli taunt him. Adam moved back slightly, feeling Eli's breath against him.

"If I say it was him, guess who gets to be held at knife point again? And not walk out alive?" Eli whispered.

"I'm just going to, umm…" The nurse cleared her throat, gathering some things off her table. "I'm going to just wait outside until hospital officials arrive. You need stitches." She grumbled, making her way nervously to the door. The three friends waited until she was gone. Adam bit his lip, watching Eli adjusted himself back into his seat.

"So, what? You're just going to pretend it never happened?" He asked in a grunt once the nurse was out of the room. Clare took a seat by Eli.

"There's not much we can do." She murmured, taking some tissues by her side. She dabbed it around Eli's wounds as carefully as she could. Adam sighed in annoyance and folded his arms.

"Sad, isn't it?" Came a voice from the door. It sent chills down Adam's spine. He turned to face Fitz and Owen peeping into the office.

"Fitzgerald." Adam said through his teeth, marching forward.

"Adam." Clare warned, dropping the bloodied tissue to the floor as she rushed to her feet.

"Shut up, Saint Edwards." Fitz grunted. "I've decided to stop talking to fugly virgins." He grinned as Owen laughed at his side. Clare paused in her steps, blinking at the sentence. Adam looked back. Eli's eyes were hard and Clare's had become watery. The girl couldn't take an insult to save her life. Adam looked back at Fitz.

"She's anything but fugly." He said defensively. Fitz looked him up and down in disgust, and smirked. Adam hated him. Far more than RonRon or anyone else. He despised Fitz with all that he had in him. Fitz leaned forward devilishly.

"What're you going to do about it, Gracie?" He whispered through his thin lips. Silence. Clare's eyes widened and her jaw dropped slightly. Eli sat up in his seat, with his forearms tensing. Adam stared blankly at Fitz with a fire inside his eyes.

"You _don't_ call me that." He warned through his teeth. Fitz chuckled slightly at the response. Clare and Eli glanced at one another, then back at Adam worryingly.

"Whatever, lady." Owen huffed, patting Fitz's back.

"Yeah, let's get going." Fitz sighed, making his way to the door. Adam's lip twitched. Oh, how his knuckles were burning. Yearning for bare flesh to be crushed underneath them. Breathing increase. Heart quickens. Eyes sharpen. But no. He watched the two people he hated most in the world, walk right out of that room. He didn't even lay a figure on them. As the door shut, Adam's hands began to shake in frustration.

"Adam…" Clare began.

"I'm fine." Adam spat. He shoved passed her, and grabbed her wrist. He pulled Clare back to Eli and took a seat next to him. She obviously was obliged to sit down as well. "I should've been there." Adam grumbled, drenching in regret. Eli looked up at him with sympathy.

"There's nothing you could've done to stop them, Adam." He said softly. Adam stared down at the floor. _Yes, there is._ What Eli said used to make sense a few days ago but Adam's view on violence had changed by then. After a few moments of silence, Clare slid a hand over Adam's. She grasped his pale shaking fingers and transferred her warmth onto him. He barely flinched in response.

"It gets better." Clare whimpered. Adam gulped hard. He had heard those words all too many times. But nevertheless, the three of them sat huddled together in that dull nurse's office waiting for the paramedics to arrive. Clare had a hand over Adam's, and another over Eli's. The three of them were interlocked with one another and holding onto all that they were certain of in their lives. Each other. A feeling of togetherness that they had missed all too much. There was no denying the fear they all had of Fitz at that point. He was different. He was worse.

After Adam's classes finished for that day he headed straight for Bianca's car. He waited there even if it rained. He didn't wait long, Bianca soon made her way over to him just before his clothes were officially drenched.

"I heard what happened with Eli." She greeted, unlocking the car doors. Adam shook his head as he stepped into the passenger seat of her car. He slammed the door shut out of frustration. While pulling her seatbelt over her chest, Bianca watched Adam carefully. "Was it really that bad?" She asked at the expression on his face. Adam's jaw tightened.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Never mind, let's not talk about it. I should've been there." He sighed, adjusting his seat. Bianca started up her car and glanced sideways at Adam.

"Don't blame it on yourself." She told him sternly. Adam chuckled slightly, before his face faded back to a miserable grey.

"I wasn't there for him." He murmured into the stale air. Bianca reversed carefully, looking in her rear view mirror as she did so. Adam shrugged, hovering his fingers over his mouth. "I could've… done something." He said in a heavy sigh. Bianca stepped on the brake, turning to him.

"What? Fight them off? Both Fitz and Owen? Are you insane?" She asked. Adam folded his arms tightly, and bit his lip.

"I would've been fine." He stated. Bianca half laughed, and turned out of the parking lot.

"You would get your little white butt kicked, puta." She giggled, accelerating down the road. Adam glared at her.

"Have you seen me fight?" He asked in a low voice.

"No." She chuckled, thinking about how idiotic the idea was. Adam firmly buried his shoulders into the seat.

"I'm an okay fighter." He grumbled. Bianca grinned.

"Sure you are." She said sarcastically. Adam shook his head. She knew nothing. She didn't know about that feeling that rushes through your veins. That anger inside your chest. The ability to find the strength that you never even knew you possessed. On their way to the pit they discussed the different gang members. Well, the ones Adam was familiar with. Bianca liked RonRon. She thought he was king in the gang. They went over Vince as well. How she used to have an affair with him but they're over now, and Vince doesn't care whom she's with anymore. Bianca also said that Hal was her favorite out of all of them.

"He force-fed me whiskey." Adam grumbled with a sizzling expression.

"Force-fed? Wow, you are such a lightweight. I would've taken it without any questions." Bianca sighed, with the pit in sight. It was getting dark already and the yellow streetlights began to flicker into effect.

"Yeah, but I don't drink." Adam reminded her, reaching to remove his seatbelt. He licked his lips, looking up at her. Her eyes were so focused on the road, but her fingertips were so at ease on the steering wheel. She almost looked majestic under the light from the street lamps. "What… what about Dean?" Adam asked suddenly.

"Ex-Abercrombie and Fitch model Dean?" Bianca asked in return.

"I guess." Adam shrugged. Bianca drove to the side of the pitch, where the slope was for the cars to enter.

"The guy's super gay, it's gross." She giggled, shaking his head. Adam's eyes hardened and he stared at her. Bianca glanced at him quickly, knowing she had said the wrong thing. "I mean… it's just – he's – "

"I get it." Adam sighed, cutting past her. He looked out the window as the drove passed the familiar crowds of gang members. He shook his head slightly. "Us LGBTs are weird to you." He said softly as Bianca parked in the dirt. Bianca looked up from the steering wheel at Adam worryingly.

"Adam, that's not what I meant." She said in a firm voice

"Whatever." Adam shrugged, with obvious sarcasm. He flung the door open and stepped into the pit. He shut the door behind him, sighing heavily. Bianca quickly came after him, locking her car up.

"I really didn't mean anything by it, I was just joking around." She said as she came up by his side. As they made their way towards their crowd, Adam smirked with some sense of sarcasm again.

"LGBT's always a joke, isn't it?" He grumbled. Bianca glared at him for a moment before grabbing his forearm and pulling him towards her.

"Could you just stop taking things so sensitively and seriously?" She asked out of frustration. Adam looked down at her, knowing that their faces were far too close. He snatched his hand away and took a step back from her.

"Sorry, I guess." He sighed, turning his back on her. As he began to walk away, Bianca stared her him. But she was building with regret and found her lungs huffing just at the thought of it.

"Be careful tonight, Torres." She blurted out from behind him. Adam paused at the words, and glanced back at her. He looked utterly confused at her good cop bad cop persona. But nevertheless, he turned back around and marched towards his crew for the night. Bianca watched him walk over to Vince, RonRon and Dean. She had a sour look on her face. It faded slowly as she began to feel the regret rebuilding at the back of her throat. Sympathy. Shame. She gulped it away and turned to find Hal and spark some light conversation. Meanwhile, Adam found his hand in Vince's, in a strong shake.

"Torres," Vince greeted in a low voice. "Got something different for you tonight. For all of you." He corrected, looking at RonRon and Dean from the side. The two of them looked up in curiosity as Vince reached into his jacket. He pulled out a small piece of paper, holding it between his middle and index finger. There were a few words scribbled onto it in messy dark blue handwriting. "This is the location for tonight's event. You," Vince pointed to Adam, "Dean and Hal are going to perform a simple plan A robbery. RonRon will be your guide, understood?" He grumbled, holding the paper forward. Adam was about to reach out for it but RonRon pushed his hand away and took it right on of Vince's palm. Adam scowled at him as RonRon analyzed the important location in his hands.

"A robbery?" Dean asked. His eyes were filled with some sort of horror. Vince smirked at him.

"A robbery." He repeated, with an enthusiastic expression. "Exciting stuff, isn't it?" Vince asked with a slight chuckle. Dean looked unsurely out of the pit, pursing his lips together. His brow was furrowed just like Adam's. It was obvious that he was probably just as new to this as he was.

"Sure." Adam grumbled, shoving his hands into his damp pockets. He was cursing at himself mentally. He wanted to run for it. Just grab Dean and run. But his feet stayed just as they were. Just as usual. Adam didn't take the leap.

"Who's ready for tonight?" Came a loud yell, coming their way. Adam glanced over his shoulder to see Hal returning. Without Bianca. Hal was drunk. His face was red with Asian flush and his smile was lop-sided. He threw his arms over Dean and Adam. "Man, this is awesome! Awesome! What goods are we playing with?" He asked, nodding at Vince. The higher man smirked, taking a step towards his own car.

"Glad you asked, soldier." He laughed, grasping the hood. As he hauled it up, revealing a black blanket, Adam raised an eyebrow.

"What goods?" He murmured, looking at Hal. Vince pulled of the blanket and Hal quickly slid away from Dean and Adam.

"Those goods." He breathed with excitement in his eyes. As he made his way to Vince's side, both Adam and Dean froze. Guns. Adam glared at the glimmering objects resting lustfully in the trunk of Vince's car. Hal's eager hands rushed towards one or two, grasping them tightly with amusement in his eyes. "Dean, bro!" He laughed, shoving a gun into his hand. Dean stared down at the object he now possessed. He looked scared of it. Curious, but scared. "Don't point it at your face, idiot!" Hal scowled, slapping the back of Dean's head. Dean jumped pointing the weapon at the ground. And before Adam's eyes, Vince held one out towards him. Adam gazed up at the taller figure and found every inch of him protesting.

"I'm not carrying one of those." He said in a small voice. Vince smirked, and insisted. Adam felt the gun scratch against his upper ribs. He backed away, licking his lips. "I'm not going to, alright? I'm out if I do." He grumbled firmly. Vince, Dean and Hal peered up at him and at the threat. RonRon giggled from behind them, twirling a gun once in one hand. Vince sourly pulled away.

"Torres gets a melee. Not a blunt though." He stated, moving back over to car. Adam loosened in relief.

"What's a not-blunt-melee?" He asked as his face started to redden. Vince appeared again, with something in his hand.

"Don't you play video games?" He asked. He was carrying a black leather object. Thin and slick. Vince pulled the cover off to reveal a shiny silver knife. It was jagged. Not some sort of kitchen knife. No, this knife was built for a whole other kind of hacking and slicing.

"Oh." Adam said as Vince came around his car.

"Think fast." He murmured, tossing the weapon in the air. Adam's eyes widened as it flew right in his direction. Hal ducked easily and Dean scrambled away. Adam's hands sprung forward and prayed for the best. He caught the knife in the middle. His insides turned and hoped that the pain would be kind to him. But, it was far too kind. Adam looked down at his hands and saw no blood. "Nice." Vince smiled, nodding. Adam's heart was racing as he looked back up at Vince in shock. Who throws knives at co-workers you're on good terms with? Vince, of course. In this industry.

"Right, so, are we ready?" RonRon butted, sticking his gun at the back of his jeans.

"They're all yours." Vince shrugged, looking back at the group of three boys standing awkwardly by RonRon's side. RonRon looked them all up and down with a slight look of disappointment. He sighed and turned in the opposite direction.

"Alright." He sang, striding firmly towards another set of cars. Hal nudged Adam's shoulder, insisting him to follow their new leader for the night. Dean, Hal and Adam followed RonRon to a rusting white racecar. It had black chromed wheels and to battered black stripes down the front. Adam could usually tell straight away what type it was, but RonRon had scratched out its license plate and any form of logo or identification. His best guess was that it was a stolen car. "Get it." RonRon grumbled from the driver's side. Hal eagerly made his way to the passenger's eat, while Dean and Adam slipped uncomfortably into the back. Hal cheered excitedly as RonRon pressed on the accelerator. The guy was actually excited. Excited for what they were about to do. The crimes. Everything. RonRon smirked at his enthusiasm and ruffled his hair. RonRon liked that criminal attitude.

Meanwhile in the back, Adam and Dean were silent. They stared out the window as the moonlight scenery passed by in a flash. Adam hadn't even half processed the fact that he was about to commit a real offense. It hadn't hit him yet. Dean was already mentally coming to the conclusion that he'd be in jail tonight and was sweating just thinking about it. But they rolled up into an alley across from their location, and everything went silent. All that was heard was RonRon's fumbling from the front seat as he prepared something for them. Dean glanced down at Adam, and he glanced back. There was a look in Dean's eyes that Adam could easily identify. He saw it in Eli's eyes just earlier that day in the nurse's office. Fear. Fear of the future, fear that couldn't be prevented. It was in every wrinkle of his young face, distraught from his sleepless nights. "Right! Kids!" RonRon teased, turning back to them. Adam looked up unwillingly at RonRon and Hal, both grinning.

"Game plan?" Hal asked, patting Dean's leg, hard. Dean jolted slightly, obviously still unsettled over the idea.

"Yeah, game plan time." RonRon smirked. He sighed, leaning back even more. "When the store closes up we'll march right in there and scare the Jesus out of this guy. We've got the guns and manpower." He stated, now looking similarly enthused like Hal. "Hal and I will just threaten the dude, alright? Just hold the guns up and show we mean business. Dean you're on cash collecting duty up at the counter. Torres, you're melee, which means you'll be the one getting up close and personal. No masks. Understood?" He grumbled, pointing a firm finger at Adam's chest. Adam stared at him in confusion.

"What?" He blinked.

"Good." RonRon grunted, unbuckling his seat belt. Adam looked at Dean, who shrugged, then back at RonRon.

"What'd you mean no masks, and up close and personal?" Adam asked frantically as RonRon placed his hand on the door handle. RonRon sighed heavily and turned back to him.

"That means, son, that we're not going in any damn disguise. Oh, and you're going to take your knife, get behind the guy and press that blade against that wonderful neck of his. Alright?" He said slowly, running his finger over the front of his throat in an agonizing motion. Adam's eyes widened in horror as he stared at the action. RonRon turned away again and kicked his door open. Dean and Hal began to ease themselves out of the car after him but Adam stayed frozen. He was going to do what? What? "Torres, hurry up! Closing time!" RonRon called from outside. Adam pulled himself out of the car, slamming the door shut behind him. He rushed to catch up with them. Adam's feet plunged through the dirt and mud outside as he chased after the three taller men. His breath was visible in the cold air, and his fingers were starting shake.

"Don't sweat it, Torres. Just pull a swift motion and keep that muscle power up, understood? You're not actually slicing the guy's throat, just threatening him." RonRon sighed, hopping onto the sidewalk. He pressed his back against the wall and motioned the other three to do the same. He pulled Hal close to him.

"What?" Hal muttered. RonRon looked into the shop window then back at Hal.

"We go in first, then we call Torres and Dean in, alright?" He said, looking back at the other two boys behind him.

"Sweet." Hal grinned, nodding. RonRon breathed out carefully, and softly murmured a countdown. It was far too quiet for that time of night. It was far too young. Adam was far too young.

"Go." Adam heard. Suddenly RonRon slipped from view and there was a tinkling in the air. He had pushed the door open to the shop and Hal quickly followed. There was silence again. Dean and Adam stared out at the street in front of them, now alone against the wall. Suddenly, Adam felt a larger, warmer hand close over his icy, shaking fingers. He gulped as he felt Dean's breath against the back of his neck.

"Are you alright?" Adam asked in a whisper.

"Hey, guys, sorry but we're closed!" Came an old chuckle from inside the shop. Adam shut his eyes. "Hello? I said we're closed." The voice said again. Adam and Dean waited in the cold for something. A sign. Anything. Anything at all that showed them some sort of direction. Dean's lips chattered open.

"I'm scared." He whispered softly. Adam heard him gulp just seconds before the silence was broken.

"Wha – "

"Hands above your head!" Came RonRon's strong voice.

"But – "

"Hands, god damn it! Get them above your head and move to the counter!" He shouted. A chill swung up Adam's spine as the yelling began. He grasped Dean's hand tighter, squeezing it back.

"Don't be." Adam said in a louder voice, to be heard over the ruckus next to them.

"Torres! Dean!" Came a shout, it came from Hal. Adam and Dean froze. His eyes shot open and readjusted to the light. Adam's breathing was uneven. His feet were unwillingly. "Torres! Dean!" Hal shouted even louder. Suddenly, Dean and Adam strung apart, rushing to the door. The barged in. Adam realized it was a jewelry shop. Oh, of course. It just had to be. Dean held his weapon up, rushing to the counter where a briskly middle aged man had his hands just behind his head. The man was terrified as Dean placed the gun to his head.

"The counter, open it." Dean huffed in a broken voice. The man scrambled for the cashier counter, busting it open with a jingle of different keys. Dean, glancing back at Adam. "Torres. Game plan." He reminded him a grunt. Adam had no choice. He darted towards the man, and stood behind him. Adam swung an arm around his neck, and reached into his pocket. He pulled out the blade, pressing it onto his collar. There was a shriek of fear. Adam pursed his lips as he held the man tightly in his arm.

"Move and you die!" Hal shouted. Adam's eyes were wild. Dean was taking all the cash there was, and scrambling in bits of expensive jewelry. Only the best. Only the most expensive. The rest didn't matter.

"Please!" Adam heard the man plead.

"Move and you die, bitch!" Hal shouted again, reloading his weapon. The man squirmed and pressed against Adam. But Adam held him tightly, feeling his body was rejecting the actions he was performing. RonRon and Hal taunted him as Dean emptied all that he could. He glared back at RonRon and nodded.

"We're clear." He grumbled. RonRon nodded back. He suddenly marched forward, gun out towards Adam and the man. He squirmed again in Adam's arm so he pressed the blade tighter and he quickly whimpered, stopping.

"Dean, blunt melee." RonRon ordered. Dean glanced at him.

"What?" He asked.

"Hit him with your gun, idiot!" RonRon shouted back. Dean nervously moved forward, smacking the guy right in the face. As the guy called out in pain, Adam felt a warm liquid dribble onto his forearm. He peered down at the struggle, seeing blood coming down the guy's mouth. Dean stared in horror at crimson against his gun and along his knuckles.

"Oh my god…" He whimpered. His face was breaking slightly in shock.

"Hey! Torres!" RonRon shouted, bringing Adam's attention back to him. Adam gulped turning to him like a deer caught in headlights. RonRon smirked for a moment nodding at him. "End scene. Break him." He breathed. Adam's eyes widened as he stared at him.

"What?" He whispered. The man screamed against him, literally fighting for his life.

"His neck, Torres! You know how! You're a smart kid!" RonRon ordered, glancing out the window to see if their cover was blown. He looked back at Adam sternly. "Do it, Torres. You know how." He repeated.

"But – "

"Do it!" Hal shouted before Adam could finish. Adam looked down at the figure in his arms. He shakily dropped the knife subconsciously and brought his strong forearms up against the man's throat.

"No! NO!" He shouted, grasping and scratching at Adam's forearms. Adam glanced at Dean, then back at the squirming man. His legs were kicking and his arms were tight over Adam's. Adam felt like he was succumbing to his orders.

"I'm sorry." He said hoarsely by the man's shoulder.

"You're sorry? Torres, what the hell? Shut up and do it!" RonRon bellowed. "Do it!" He screamed. Adam brought a hand up and grabbed the man's jaw.

"Sir! Sir, I am _so_, so, so sorry!" He whispered rapidly in a desperate voice into the man's ear. He had to know. He had to know it before it happened. Because it did. Adam pulled. His bare hands twisted the man's neck. There was a deafening cracking of bones and a gurgle at the back of his throat. There was a brief struggle but Adam finished him off. The man's strong hands soon slipped from Adam's forearm and to his side as the rest of his body gave in. He fell right out of Adam's shaking hands. RonRon and Hal chortled with laughter as the limp body collapsed forward heavily. The cracking wooden floor cradled him. Adam glared down at him and what he had done. The man wasn't moving. He was just face forward into the ground. There was a puddle of blood building at his face. All of Adam's insides seemed to stop working. He couldn't move. His face was distorted as he stared. "Is he dead?" He whimpered, watching the crimson seeping into the wood.

"No, you idiot!" RonRon laughed, coming up to the body. Adam turned to him.

"He's not?" He asked. RonRon chuckled, picking up Adam's knife. He handed it back to him and raised his eyebrows.

"I knew you had it in you." He sighed, patting his shoulder. Adam glanced back down at the lifeless body. RonRon sighed, noticing the look on his face. "He's an vegetated state. It's the way you twisted. If you had done it any differently the outcome would've been different. Well done. He's technically brain dead but still alive, you know? He'll have to be on life support, but… His loss." He said with a careless shrug. Adam's stomach plunged.

"Umm… What?" He whimpered uneasily, looking back down at the man.

"That way he can't say who did this to him so the police just leave the case. He can only answer in yes or no. Maybe not even that." Hal told him, hiding his gun away. He kicked some broken glass clear from the doorway.

"It's our signature move, and you just aced it." RonRon smirked, putting an arm over Hal, who was now carrying the goods in a bag. "Crew, out!" Hal sang. Adam stayed there as they hopped out onto the sidewalk peacefully. Adam was stuck again. Just staring at the body on the floor. The life he ruined. He did it. He did that to that poor innocent man. Probably the only working person in his family of four. Or at least, that's what Adam deduced from a family photo placed gently on top of the counter. Adam reached out with his knife and tapped the frame forward. It lightly fell face down, but the sound made Adam jump. He paused, gulping hard as his knees began to shake.

"Adam." Dean breathed, grasping Adam's shoulder. Adam looked back at the older boy with rosy cheeks, who had obviously been previously crying. "The cops will be here any second." He warned with dark eyes. Adam just continued to stare. Dean glanced down at the body, then back at Adam.

"I didn't have to." Adam said into the air, now light with the smell of a metallic substance. Dean licked his lips and forced Adam away from the body.

"You did. Now come on, we need to go." He said, pulling Adam towards the door. With a final haunting glance, Adam scrambled towards the door alongside Dean. They rushed out onto the street, stumbling along the cement and onto the other neatly paved sidewalk. They squeezed their way back into the dark alley, which now smelled of smoke and sewage. Their heavy breathing huffed the scent in and out of their lungs. But it didn't matter. They got into the car as their hands began to ache with regret. It didn't matter. Nothing did.

The sound of victory never sounded so repulsive. As Dean, RonRon, Hal and Adam drove back into the pit there were shrieks of joy and sickening grins. Eight feet stepped out of that car, creating their own paths in different directions. Vince ran up, ruffling Hal's hair and congratulating RonRon for a successful test run with the new kids. Life was in slow. There was hugging, laughing, alcohol, music, cheering, fighting, fire. Adam dragged his feet across the dirt as the rest of the men in the car disappeared from sight. He hauled his body in whichever direction it was willing to go. But then, hands caught his shoulders.

"Adam?" Bianca's voice came in a wave, washing over Adam's eardrums, creating peace. Adam looked up to see her face. Her worried, worried colorful face. Bianca's fingers traced his arms, and moved down to his hands. She placed her fingertips beneath his and brought their hands up. Her eyes widened at the blood on his forearms. "You're hurt." She deduced quickly. Adam gulped, and shook his head.

"The blood's not mine." He murmured through his chapped lips. Bianca stared up at him, noticing the glazed and exhausted look he wore on his face.

"RonRon just had to make you pull the final trick, didn't he?" She asked, searching his face for anything despite shame and fear. But, no. She found nothing more. Adam's lips shivered open.

"Please tell me I'll only have to do this once." He pleaded to her, watching her with all the strength he had left. Bianca looked up into his eyes. The very expression she wore said it all. Adam felt his heart sink in disappointment. Of course it wouldn't be the last of it. There would be more to come. Worse, even.

"Dean's been crying ever since you guys arrived. Tonight's shaken him up pretty badly." Bianca sighed suddenly. Adam raised an eyebrow looking around, worried.

"Where?" He asked. Bianca pulled her hands away from his, and wiped the sweat from her palms onto the sides of her jeans.

"In his car. The convertible, right? He's put the top over." Bianca told him. Adam searched until he found that blue, square car. It wasn't a bright blue or a dark blue. It was soft. Easy on the eyes. Sky blue, maybe. Adam locked his gaze on it.

"I should go talk to him." He said.

"Really?" Bianca asked, confused. Adam licked his lips and nodded softly. He looked back at her.

"Yeah, we're friends." He stated, in that same hoarse voice of his. Bianca folded her arms and nodded as Adam began to walk off. As he trudged through the dirt, Bianca watched him. She wanted to say something. Anything. Just to comfort him. But all the good phrases were either gone or overused. Just pick one.

"And Adam," She called after him. Adam paused, turning back at her in a daze. "I'm glad you're okay." Bianca grumbled, looking away from him as she said so.

"Thanks." He replied, taken aback at the sentence. He turned away again, striding to the car. "Physically." He said under his breath. Adam ran his hand along the side of the car until he reached the backseat. He paused with his hand over the door handle. It was locked. So Adam decided it would be politer to tap on the window. So he did. "Dean? It's Adam." Adam called against the glass, refusing to look in. There was silence between Adam and the car for a moment, before the older boy inside decided to give in. Adam heard a click as the door unlocked. Licking his lips, Adam hauled the door open and slipped into the backseat. He shut the door and turned to the figure curled up next to him. Dean was hugging his legs to his chest, biting his nails. His greasy hair was a real mess and his face was bright red and wet with tears. His clear blue eyes were fighting to stay open, his hands were shaking. Adam gulped, trying to reach out to him.

"I don't understand why they do it." Dean said suddenly, making Adam's hand retreat back to his lap. Dean breathed out shakily through the tears, biting thumbnail hard. "I'm twenty-one, uneducated, and a total burn-out but I can realized that the dude we busted was innocent. He was a good guy, and then…" He trailed off. With a few blinks, several sets of tears whizzed down his wrinkled and cheeks.

"And then I ruined it." Adam said, gulping slowly. Dean looked up at him.

"We ruined it." He corrected, watching the guilt spread like wildfire on Adam's face. "You were under pressure… We were under pressure." He stammered. Adam quickly wiped his own tear from his cheek as it fell rapidly.

"How many years do you think we'd get if the cops busted us?" Adam asked with an indifferent look on his face. He heard Dean make a humming noise as he brought his face back into his knees and grasped his hair hard. Adam watched as he rocked back and forth. He was having a breakdown and it was only the first of their work with Vince.

"I want to die." He heard Dean say in a muffled voice.

"Don't say that." Adam snapped.

"I want to die!" He repeated in a cry, digging his nails into the back of his skull even harder.

"Dean!" Adam warned, grasping his hand. He pulled Dean's hands away from his face with a force that he never knew he even had. He pushed Dean's hands against the front of his knees instead, to prevent any further harm Dean had on the back of his neck. "Dean." Adam said softer, watching him as he shook. He couldn't help but feel unbelievably sorry for him. The guy thought he was going nowhere. That he wanted to die. Adam slithered an arm over his toned shoulders and pulled him closer. "You're the one person I trust here, okay?" He said against the back of Dean's neck.

"Okay." Dean whimpered in return, in an awfully broken voice. Adam moved forward and kissed Dean's square cheek, returning the favor. He pulled away and hauled Dean against his chest.

"Right here… In this car… Dean, you listening?" He mumbled. Dean hummed in reply to show that he could hear him, still hiding his face. Adam sighed, rubbing his back soothingly. "We… we're safe."

_[A/N: Anddd how was that? Did chapter 5 lived up to your expectations? Leave a review and let me know! Writing chapter 6 now. Who's ready?]_


	6. Chapter 6

**Percussions**

Chapter 6

It was freezing outside. Adam's fingertips were numb even if they were tucked away in his toasty pockets. He knew he was supposed to have adjusted since birth but he was terrible with the cold, no matter how much he enjoyed layering his clothes. He was pale and sickly as he made his way bright and early to the top steps of the Degrassi entrance. Suddenly there was a vibration in his back pocket. It made him jolt and make a small noise in the back of his throat as he grabbed his backside. Adam's eyes widened as he saw people giving him questioning looks. He pulled his phone out of his back pocket as they began to slowly leave.

"It's my, uh, phone…" Adam said uselessly as they moved away from him. He rolled his eyes and checked his screen. It was from Vince. 'Exciting project for you tonight. See you there.' Adam gulped and put the phone away. As he stared at the entrance of his warm school, he felt rejection. He didn't want to go back in there and suffer through those lessons. Not after last night. Not after that text he received. So Adam turned and made his way to the side. He slipped out into the back parking lot of the school and suddenly felt better. Even if it was damper, at least it wasn't so exposed to wind.

"Funny seeing you here." Came a voice. Adam quickly turned. He felt his knees freeze below him.

"Funny." He breathed. He watched as Fitz and Owen tossed their cigarettes elsewhere, and crush them under their shoes. Oh, they must have thought they were so cool. But Adam could've laughed at their cheesiness. Fitz and Owen peeled themselves off the wall and weaved their way over to Adam.

"Funny." Owen repeated, leaning forward as he did so.

"Like your face." Adam barely uttered. He couldn't help himself. He had been spending too much off-air time making lame, unfunny jokes with Dave. He let that one slip. But Owen bit down on his lower lip as he pushed forward, shoving Adam against the brick wall behind him. The smaller boy hit it and was sprung into a daze. When he tried to move away again, Fitz came in and shoved him back against it. "Dude, calm down – "

"Shut up." Fitz said before Adam could even try to protest. He peered down at him, with his fingers closed on the collar of Adam's shirt tightly. Adam's own fists began to coil by his sides. His ears reddened.

"Adam, don't." Came a smaller voice. The three boys turned to see Bianca just meters away with a dark look on her face. Adam was confused briefly before realizing what she was talking about. Bianca meant not to go all Rocky on Fitz and Owen like he did at the pit, even if she hadn't seen Adam put his muscles to use before.

"Bee, get out of here." Fitz ordered through his teeth. Adam glanced at him them back at Bianca. She hesitated. "I said, get out of here, Bee!" Fitz repeated, louder. Bianca stared at Adam. Her feet refused to cooperate with her. Adam grew nervous. Why was Bianca pausing like that? He gulped and forced his mouth open.

"Just go, okay?" He said in her direction. Bianca was appauled. Adam was actually asking her to leave. She looked back at Owen with a plea in her eyes, but Owen ignored it skillfully. And so, with a shaky turn, Bianca began to leave. Adam looked back at his attackers. He couldn't help but wonder what he had done wrong to deserve such treatment. Meanwhile, as Bianca rushed back up the school steps, she rammed right into Clare.

"Um, excuse me!" Clare said sarcastically as she stumbled backwards. But Bianca went right passed her and through the school doors. Clare glared as they swung close and Bianca didn't look back. Bianca had her strut on. The irritation on Clare's face soon faded. She knew something was up. Bianca would've at least turned back at sneered at her or spat a slimey comment. Clare raised an eyebrow, feeling the suspicion rise. Something was up. Clare glanced at the direction Bianca came from and found herself retracing her steps. She slithered into the parking lot, where she saw Fitz grumbling something to Adam against the wall, with Owen standing near him, arms folded. Clare's heart dropped and her eyes widened. She frantically looked around but there was no Eli. She had to be the one to do something. With whatever courage she possessed, Clare's pace quickened into hasty strides. Clare grabbed Fitz by the back of his jacket.

"Get off him!" She protested, pulling Fitz off of Adam for a brief moment. Just as Clare got hold of Adam's wrist, the most frightening thing happened. Fitz's brow furrowed as he angrilly lunged forward… at Clare. The force of Fitz's hands sent a shrieking Clare Edwards crashing back against the rough wall, and from there – to the ground. There was nothing worse than the sound of those painful combinations in the cold air.

"Clare!" Adam instantly rushed to the ground by Clare's side, desperately pulling an arm over her shoulder. He peered down at the petrified look on her face. Fitz had hurt her. "Clare?" Adam breathed, placing a hand to her cheek, rubbing his thumb against her soothingly. But her eyes were elsewhere. Adam followed her gaze down to Clare's hands. "Jesus…" There was blood down both her hands from when she scraped the cement. Adam stared down at them in horror as her palms filled with the bright liquid. He glared back at Fitz with a face washed over with fury. "You idiot!" He shouted. Fitz just laughed harder, looking back at Owen smugly. Adam glanced back down at Clare's injured hands as they began to shake. He wanted so badly to hold them and stop them from shaking but he knew even that gesture would cause her pain.

"I'm not afraid to hit girls anymore, Torres." Fitz giggled. Adam looked up at him as Fitz shrugged carelessly. "At the end of the day, we're all equals, aren't we?" His smile began to fade painfully slowly. He took a light step towards Adam with a disgusted look on his face. "So, you're in for a treat, tranny queen." He said with a smirk. Hatred boiled in Adam's stomach. He could take advantage of the moment. Whack Fitz in his jaw, lean, lean, lean. Machine gun his stomach with his fists. Throw a punch to his nose, and shove him to the ground. End of story. The tactics ran through Adam's head as his jaw tightened with anger. Oh, he could have so much fun.

"Back _off_!" Came a scream. Suddenly Fitz fell sideways with an enormous cracking sound. Adam backed away against Clare in shock as an object came crashing to the ground after him. It was a chair. It had been thrown against Fitz's back. Adam looked up to see Eli with a red face and sleeves rolled up to his elbows. Danger in his eyes. Fitz struggled to get back on his feet. "Yeah, come on, come at me!" Eli taunted, rolling his sleeves up. But Owen started running towards him from the side. Adam's heart began to race. Wrong stance, Elijah. Arms up. Crouch, buddy. But no, Eli took the hit right to his gut, crumpling forward with a grunt.

"God damn it." Adam muttered, trying to bring himself to his feet.

"Stay down, Torres!" Fitz shouted, pressing his shoe against Adam's shoulder, shoving him back against the wall. Adam batted his leg away and looked behind him at Eli. He was just taking the attack from Owen. Adam's hands were starting to tense. His eyes were frantically pacing in his skull. He was becoming twitchy as he watched his own best friend get torn to shreds right before his eyes. Adam's muscles tightened. He was so ready in that moment. He knew he shouldn't pull any moves or raise any suspicions, but as Eli called out in pain one more time, Adam lost it. He catapulted from the ground, shoving Fitz right out his way. Like a superhero, Adam dashed to Owen and Eli. Clare called after him but it was no use.

Adam grabbed Owen and surprised them all with his abnormal strength as he forced Owen away from Eli. He felt Fitz's hands grabbing his back for a fight as Owen stumbled to the floor. From the ground, Eli glared up at Adam. He saw an unfamiliar look on Adam's face. Before he could examine it any further, Adam turned to face Fitz. With all the anger in his chest, Adam suddenly swung. His fists collided into Fitz's abdomen. Shock plastered both Eli and Clare's face at the impact. Fitz lost balance for a moment and bumped into a car behind him. Then there was silence as Fitz glared at Adam dangerously, clutching himself. Adam noticed two things. One: he should've thought before he did anything. Two: He wasn't ready to fight Fitz. "Oh, you're going to regret that…" Fitz grumbled, pushing himself off the car. Adam took a step back as his friends itched to stand up and help him. Adam shook his head, with hands in front of him to signal his surrender.

"Wait, Fitz, I – " Too late. Fitz whipped an arm over Adam's neck, forcing him downwards. Adam skidded as his gaze was quickly met with the concrete ground beneath him. Fitz's glistening arm muscles tightened around Adam's neck. The pressure built up like a twisted metal chain before Adam could get one last breath of air. He gasped desperately. Fitz was choking him.

"No! Adam!"

"Fitz, stop it! Please!" Adam heard just before a ringing noise filled his ears. He tried looking up but it was nearly impossible. He caught sight of Eli and Clare just once, being taunted by Owen. Then Adam was forced to look down again. His mouth was quievering as his eyes fluttered in their sockets and his face turned a spectrum of colors. There was no oxygen. No way of breathing. His was scratching and digging at Fitz's arms, begging for his life as it slipped away second by second. His feet dug into the ground, trying to find other ways to escape the horror of the situation. He being suffocated right in front of Clare and Eli. He gaped and wheezed continuously for air. But all he ever got was mouthfuls of emptiness. Suddenly, there came an indescribable, twisted feeling. And then nothing. Nothing but the dark.

* * *

><p>It was a blur. Adam wasn't sure if it was the room around him doing that or if it was just his own eyes and imagination. Either way, it was a blur.<p>

"Shut up, he's coming around." Adam heard from his side. He could hear a constantly banging. Like a thud. It was muffled and painful. Oh, it was in his head.

"No, really, Clare? Is that what he's doing? My, could've had me fooled. Why don't you tell me some other interesting things? Like, I don't know, that the sky is blue or something!" Came a sarcastic voice. Then there was a heavy sigh and muttering. Adam was relieved to feel the air brush into his lungs then out again with ease.

"Okay, the sky isn't blue, Eli! It's only that color because it's a reflection of the sea's color! And the sea's color is the reflection of the sky's color! So technically, scientists can't ever prove that –"

"Can you both please shut up?" Adam whined groggily, cutting passed the voices. He rubbed his sore eyes before blinking hard at the ceiling. He tried hitching himself onto his elbows but all the blood rushed to his head and the blurs returned.

"Easy, buddy…" Eli sang, grasping Adam's shoulder comfortingly. Adam's head spun as the figures came into focus. He immediately recognized his surroundings. He was in Eli's room. It was dimly light by a desk light and the window showed that it was already dark outside. Adam looked back at his friends in utter confusion. "You've been out cold since this morning." Eli stated.

"What?" He breathed, looking between the two.

"We told teachers that we all had something to attend to, and just brought you back here. Don't worry, your parents won't know." Eli told him, rubbing his back in a soothing fashion. Adam hesitated, taking all the information in, slowly processing it.

"You… You still haven't told anyone that it was Fitz and Owen, have you?" He asked carefully. Clare and Eli glanced at one another with guilty looks on their faces, then back down at Adam. He sighed and sat up properly between them.

"Don't worry, Adam." Clare said, trying to seem comforting. But she was anything but that. There was so much doubt in her voice. Fear, confusion. Like she was trying to be strong for everyone else. She reached forward, placing her hand on Adam's knee. Adam looked down at it. Her hand was tightly wrapped in a white bandage and so was her other hand. There were dabs of blood in some areas. Adam looked back up at Clare's smiling face, full of insecurities. "We'll be alright." She said softly. The memory of Clare being throwing to the ground rushed into his mind again. The blood that oozed through her broken skin. It sent an inhumane shiver down Adam's spine as he shook his head.

"No, we won't." He muttered pessimistically.

"Adam – "

"We won't!" He protested, glaring back at Eli. "We have to tell someone! This," Adam gestured to Clare's hands, "This can't continue!" He exclaimed as Eli and Clare looked down at her little bandaged hands, chewing on the inside of her lip as she tore her gaze away from her friends.

"Adam. For now, we don't have a choice." Eli said by his side. Those were exactly the words Adam didn't want to hear and had no interest in. "We just have to push through it. That's all we can do." He mumbled, looking up at him. Adam bit his lip shaking his head. He could do so much more. He could end it. He really could. Just like how he ended the problems with Drew. Adam ran his hands over his face. His head was battered with options and frustration. Eli looked at the disappointment on Clare's face. It made his eyes fall. He licked his lips nervously and slid his hand along the bedsheets behind Adam's back until they softly made contact with the tips of Clare's fingers. Clare's eyes widened as she glanced at Eli. He just looked back at her with deep eyes as his fingers slid between hers. "I'm sure we'll be okay." He said indifferently. Clare gulped, looking down at the ground. She squeezed his hand tightly and held back any form of emotion on her face. Eli held her just as tight, but then Adam looked suddenly from his palms. Their hands broke apart quickly.

"Whatever you say." Adam sighed unconvincingly. Eli glanced at Clare, she did the same, and cleared his throat.

"Well, listen, Clare and I are going out for some hot chocolate because she wants to clear her head after today's events. Join us." He stated, patting Adam's back in a brotherly manner.

"No, I'm good." Adam said, shaking his head. He struggled to place his feet onto the ground. "Although since you have a new car, could you drop me off at…" He paused. Wait. What time was it? Adam glanced out the window again. It was pretty dark. Vince was probably expecting him. Adam stood to his feet despite difficulties and began digging through his pockets.

"At where? Your place?" Eli asked as he stood from the edge of the bed. Four text messages. All from Vince, asking him where he was. The final one told him a new meet up zone for 'something special'. Adam's eyes grew intense with suspicion. "Dude? Your place?" Eli called when Adam didn't respond to him. Adam put the phone away and turned to him. He fiddled with his hands at his sides, looking up at Eli darkly.

"No, not my place."

* * *

><p>"You alright, man? Why'd you even have to go to this place at this time of night?" Eli asked, checking Adam in the rear view mirror as they pulled up just a block away from the destination. Adam was anxious. He was rubbing his sweaty hands on his jeans and licking his lips.<p>

"No, reason. Just need to pick up a few things." He lied, looking out the window. He unbuckled himself from the car and put a hand on the door handle. He saw some thugs walking by across the street. Adam felt his ears redden. He noticed them from the pit.

"What low lives. Be careful, Adam. It's dark and the people look like they belong with Vince." Clare half laughed. Adam's ears reddened even more.

"Yeah, weird." He chuckled half heartedly, before pushing the door open. "I'll, umm… see you guys tomorrow." He said, placing a foot outside.

"Bye, Adam." Eli said, looking back at him from the front seat.

"Take care of yourselves." Adam returned, with a hand on the top of the car door. He looked carefully down at Clare, and at her hands. "See you." Adam mumbled, fixated for a moment. He finally shut the door, and he was out in the cold again. Parts of his body still felt numb, and his neck was sore. As he approached his destination Adam became light footed, slipping into the dark atmosphere.

"Torres!" Came a shout. Adam jumped as Vince came into sight across the street. They were in an old gasoline station. It had been abandoned just months before. The government wanted to inspect it because of rumors that some of the gas still worked in some parts of the station. Adam remembered reading it in the paper one time he was sick.

"Took you long enough." RonRon scowled as he drove his fist into his own hand menacingly.

"Sorry. Got caught up in something." Adam uttered in a bitter response. RonRon chuckled and shook his head at him.

"Oh, yeah? What?" He asked sarcastically. Adam's jaw tightened.

"A fight." He said sourly. RonRon and Vince glanced at him as they began to walk alongside him.

"A fight, eh?" Vince asked.

"Yeah, a fight." Adam repeated. He shrugged it off like it was no big deal. "The guy had me in a choke." He said strongly. Vince made a hissing noise and patted Adam's shoulder in a strange, brotherly manner.

"Tough move, man." He muttered. Adam nodded.

"Why were you in a fight?" RonRon asked suspiciously. Adam gulped. _Because my friends and I are defenseless misfits that have major flaws._

"Doesn't matter." He uttered instead, walking sternly to where the rest of the gang was. Vince shook it off and cleared his throat.

"Alright, party people! Let's get it started!" He jeered. A roar came from Vince's gang that made Adam pause in shock for a moment. He turned to Vince.

"What exactly is going on again?" He asked. Vince smirked, tapping Adam's arm, hard.

"You're in your first fight today, my brother. The real deal." He said. Adam's heart lunged.

"What?"

"Literally. Look at 'em, Torres." Vince pulled Adam closer and pointed at the shadowed figures standing at their parked cars, just meters away from them. Adam didn't recognize a single face. They were all tall, lean, not so muscular, but had hard, snake like faces.

"Let's do this!" Came a shout from one of the shadowed figures. A tall, silk haired man appeared in the moon light, with his yellow teeth glinting in Adam's pathway. Adam swallowed hard as he approached, looking like an animal.

"Shirts or skins?" Vince asked suddenly. Adam blinked, looking at him. His opponent was waiting. "Shirt or skins? Sometimes, at the end of these things, we can't identify who's who. So shirts or skins is usually a good way to clear things up." He shrugged. Adam's eyes widened. What? He petridied staring back at his opponent. He wasn't ready for this. Not at all.

"Shirt." Adam uttered. At that, the man tugged his shirt off and tossed it backwards, flexing his muscles. Adam was shoved forward, and stumbled before his opponent.

"You ready for this?" The man grunted.

"I, uhh…" Adam paused, glancing back at Vince. There was a bang. It made Adam jump, but little did he know, that was the signal to start. He was tackled at the waist, skidding backwards in the dirt. The shouting began. Loud, everywhere. Just yelling, chanting. And Adam was in pain at his waist as the man dug into him. He grunted, shoving the man away with all he could. It wasn't working. He tried again. And again. But nothing.

"Torres! Knees!" Came a shout. It was RonRon. He was helping him. Despite his hatred for RonRon, Adam hauled a knee up into the guy's chest. He backed away quickly, clutching himself. Adam attacked. The adrenaline was flowing so casually by then. It was like breathing to him. His arms were pumped and his brain was on fire. He pounced and threw his punches like there was no tomorrow. But even so, the man tackled him. Adam thrust his toes into the dirt to force himself not to topple over. He rammed the guy's neck with his elbow, hard. But he didn't budge.

"How old are you? Fourteen?" The man grunted into Adam's stomach. Adam's groaned as he lost his balance and was slammed backwards into a car.

"Hey, that's my ride!" Came a protest from within the crowd. Adam's fingers dug into the man's back, trying to haul him away. Adam glanced forward, and noticed something… Dean. He had a baseball bat in his hand across the street, and was yelling. He smashed a shop window open, sending shattered glass everywhere. Adam's eyes widened. What was he doing?

"Dean!" Adam called over the shouting. The plea was no use. Dean just kept yelling and attacking the shop window. "Damn it, Dean!" Adam uttered. He brought his knee up again into the guy's chest, making the man make a choking noise. Adam grabbed the man by his hair and forced him to the ground. Just as the man was about to get back up, Adam started running.

"Hey! Wha – Torres, what're you doing? You can't run away from a fight!" Vince shouted. Adam's feet pounded against the cement as he darted across the road.

"I told you he wasn't ready!" RonRon spat through his teeth. Adam grabbed the back of Dean's shirt.

"What the heck do you think you're doing? This isn't part of tonight's plan!" Adam exclaimed, bringing Dean to face him. Dean was crying hard, his face was distorted and wrinkly as the tears pour from his eyes. Adam's grip on him softened. Dean was bawling his eyes out and was sweating like a pig. He smelt of alcohol. Lots of it. "Dean? Dude, you alright? You smell like a bar." Adam muttered, trying to look him in the eye. Dean just shook his head, bringing his shaking hands to his face as he trembled on the spot.

"Hey!" Came a shout. The shop door opened and the keeper came out. He held a gun in his pudgy hands.

"Whoa, Jesus!" Adam jumped back, slapping an arm over Dean's chest defensively.

"Sir, he just had a lot to –"

"What do you think you're doing, hey? This is my shop! What've you done?" He demanded, waving the gun in Dean's direction. Dean choked on his tears, whimpering and unable to reply. He dropped the bat into the scattered glass. Adam glanced back at him, then at the shop keeper.

"Look, sir – "

"Pull the move, Adam!" Hal ordered from across the road. Adam looked back, seeing the group slowly advancing towards them. He looked frantically back at shop keeper, who was confused at the terminology being tossed around.

"The move, Torres!" Vince persisted.

"I can't! Not again!" Adam shouted back at him. Oh, God. Things were so messy. Adam glanced around. For anything. Anyone. From face to face, just looking for someone to trust. But Dean was too drunk to rely on.

"Do it, Torres! You got yourself into this mess!" Vince's voice echoed in Adam's ears.

"I… I'm so sorry." Adam whispered, shaking his head.

"Sorry won't fix my windows!" The shop keeper grunted. Adam swallowed hard as he found himself advancing at the shop keeper. The pressure was too much for Adam. The pressure to follow Vince's every command. Adam knocked the gun right out of the shop keeper's hands and got up behind him.

"I'm so sorry!" He said louder.

"See, I told you. There he goes again with the 'sorry' shit." RonRon uttered to Vince. Grab of the neck. Turn of the wrists. And a thud. The shop keeper fell to the ground and there was silence. Nothing but breathing, and Dean's tears. Adam stared down at the man.

"I'm so sorry." Adam whispered to himself, looking back up at the crowd that had stopped moving entirely. His opponent was in a state of horror.

"Dude, you're a fucking freak." He said, staring at him. Oh, that word. Adam licked his lips, stepping off the sidewalk with clenched fists.

"Yeah? Let's get this over with." Adam grumbled, taking a step forward. The opponent quickly put his hands up in surrender.

"Hey! Hey, now, buddy! I give up, alright? Fight's over." He half laughed, backing away down the street. Adam strut forward bitterly. "Fight's over, dude! Come on, man!" The opponent bellowed, shoving Adam's shoulder. Adam stumbled back, blinking in shock. "I said I quit, bro. Damn, chill out." The opponent said, shaking his head. Adam's jaw tightened but he stayed put. The man walked off back to his car.

"Close call, buddy." One of the other gang members said to him.

"Whatever, man. Just get me out of here." The opponent grunted, jumping into the backseat of the convertible. Adam pouted slightly as he turned away, back to Vince and his gang. He was grinning widely. An engine revved and the car skidded away.

"Well, done, my man! You're hood!" Vince laughed, coming over to Adam with arms wide open. Adam frowned as Vince pulled him into a hug.

"Um…" Adam murmured into Vince's shoulder. He unsurely patted Vince's back in return. Yeah. Vince. The man who almost had his brother killed. The man he used to despise with all his heart. Used to. Vince pulled away, ruffling Adam's hair.

"Isn't he ace?" Vince asked as RonRon walked passed them to his car.

"He's alright." He snorted, spitting onto the sidewalk. Adam's lips twisted with bitterness as Vince chased after RonRon. "Want to hit up a club?" RonRon asked.

"Sure, man. Adam, you coming?" Vince asked. Adam knew RonRon must've been rolling his eyes at this point.

"I'm sorry." He heard from meters down the road. Adam saw Dean sitting himself down by the lifeless man and the broken glass.

"No." Adam said, looking back at Vince. Vince nodded at him.

"Suit yourself. And hey, Torres! Celebration party tomorrow night, I'll text you the address! You better be going, Torres!" Vince called, stepping into RonRon's car. RonRon gave him one last sneer before he disappeared into the driver's seat. Tomorrow night? A party? A real one? Like the ones Vince goes to? Or popular kids at Degrassi? Adam glared down at the pavement. Perhaps it'd be fun. Adam turned back to Dean as the gang all began to evaporate down the road, slipping from view. Dean sat alone with his knees up against his chest and his model like hair in taters as he tugged at it fiercely. Adam gulped and made his way over. He sat next to Dean on the sidewalk, listening to him cry for a second night in a row.

"I ruined his life." Dean whimpered suddenly. Adam rolled his eyes.

"No, I did." He said. "I can't believe we're having this conversation again." He murmured, looking down at Dean. Dean looked up from his toned arms that previously shielded his face.

"Adam?" He gulped, blinking as he did so. Adam hated it when other people were drunk around him. He hated it ever since he dated Fiona. And there he was, sitting next to Dean, who was abnoxiously wasted.

"What, Dean?" Adam grumbled. Dean hesitated, looking at Adam's bruised knuckles for a moment.

"Do you love me?" Dean asked. Adam frowned at the gasoline station across the road.

"No, Dean." He said harshly. Dean shrugged it off, reaching for a flask inside his coat pocket.

"Do you… do you love anyone?" Dean wondered, removing the flask's cap.

"No." Adam responded in that same voice.

"Does anyone love you?" Dean asked. He spoke in a sweet tone. Drunk, but sweet.

"No." Adam repeated indifferently. Dean took a swig of alcohol, before groaning as he pulled away from the flask. He gulped hard.

"That sounds sad. Are you sad?" Dean murmured, playing with his shoe laces. Adam glanced at him in confusion.

"Shut up, Dean. You're drunk." He said, shoving the flask out of Dean's hand. Dean looked confused for a moment as he searched for it on the ground. He leaned against Adam as he reached to pick it up.

"Adam?" Dean called again. Adam rolled his eyes, feeling Dean poking his knee playfully.

"What, Dean?" He grumbled, watching some cars leaving the gasoline station, full laughter and music. Dean peered up at Adam, squished against his shoulder.

"Do you want to have sex with me?" He asked.

"Subtle." Adam commented sarcastically. "And, no, Dean. I don't." He muttered. Dean played with the fabric of Adam's shirt.

"You sure?" He asked. Adam sighed again and shook his head.

"Dean, you're so drunk." He laughed slightly, looking down at him.

"Yeah." Dean grinned, giggling. Adam smiled back, and nudged Dean off of him.

"I've got to go." He said, pulling himself off the pavement. Dean flopped onto the sidewalk. "You gonna be alright?" Adam asked, watching Dean as he hauled himself onto his knees.

"Yep! Sure will!" Dean grunted, trying to regain his balance. Adam smiled, and turned back to the street. "Goodnight, Adam!" Dean called in a slur from the sidewalk.

"Goodnight, Dean." Adam responded, chuckling slightly. He made his way passed the gasoline station, looking for a taxi stand. Adam rolled up his sleeves. It wasn't so cold anymore. His body was pulsing with heat from the fight. He was feeling good. Like a certain chemical had release in his body that made him very much at peace. He felt good.

"Adam?" Came a voice. He felt a warm hand press against his forearm, making him turn around.

"Bianca." Adam said with a smile. "You alright?" He asked, noticing a worried expression on her face. She looked up at him in the moonlight with troubled eyes.

"A little." Bianca murmured, looking down at his knuckles. Adam's face lit up slightly.

"Did you see the fight just now?" He asked enthusiastically. Bianca stared up at him and swallowed.

"Yeah, it's just… I wasn't… I wasn't expecting you to be like that." She said softly.

"What do you mean?" Adam asked.

"At school today with Fitz and Owen you just took the hits. But just now you were like the Rocky of Canada." Bianca muttered. Adam shrugged, looking down at his feet.

"Well, you asked me to." He murmured. His cheeks began to turn pink. Oh. Oh no.

"What?" Bianca breathed. Adam gulped, watching his feet shifting nervously below him.

"You asked me not to. Earlier today. With Fitz and Owen." He explained in a small voice. Bianca peered at him as he pulled his hands into his pocket.

"Taking me orders, are we?" Bianca asked, stepping forward as a soft smile slipped onto her lips. "My, my, Torres…" Bianca uttered, leaning closer to Adam's face. "Are you blushing?" She asked with a hint of sarcasm. Adam glanced up at her.

"No." He responded, looking away again.

"You're blushing." Bianca stated, giggling.

"I'm not!" He protested eagerly, even though he found himself smiling a bit to himself. Bianca just chuckled even more, watching Adam shifting uncomfortably under her gaze. "Okay, just forget it, alright?" He stammered, looking back down at the ground. Bianca looked at him, smiling to herself.

"Fine, Torres. Have it your way. But listening to me is good sometimes, alright?" Bianca said, nudging him.

"Sometimes." Adam retorted. Bianca rolled her eyes at him.

"Just be careful, okay? I saw you out there today. You need someone to tell you to watch it." She said, removing her soothing hand from his arm as she began to walk away. Adam licked his lips.

"I don't." He muttered. Bianca looked back at him as she stepped out onto the road. Adam sighed at the expression she wore that obviously disagreed with him. "I know what I'm doing when I'm fighting. I have complete control."

"No you don't." Bianca said plainly. Adam glared at her. What did she knew about fighting? "You're not like Drew. Drew fought to stay alive. You fight because it excites you." She said, folding her arms. Adam just stared. Watching her as she turned her back on him and swayed off. He glanced around the street, trying to find something to say.

"Goodnight, Bianca." Adam said darkly, refusing to watch her leave.

"You know I'm right." She returned as she walked off. Adam turned away from her, staring out at the road. He called the first taxi he saw and headed home. As he gazed out the window, over the moon lit land and blazing shop signs, he reminded himself that Bianca was right. About all of it. About everything.

_[A/N: I this didn't seem rushed or anything. :s _

_All reviews are much appreciated! You're all great.]_


	7. Chapter 7

_[A/N: I'd like to clear up the fact that Adam is not killing anyone. He's 'disabling' them, not killing them. Don't worry, they'll be another chapter addressing this fact more.]_

**Percussions**

Chapter 7

School started late on a Friday. Well, not usually, but Adam's teachers were absent. Class started at eleven thirty, but Adam arrived at eleven to get a head start and find Eli. As his locker creaked open, Adam's blue eyes fell upon a messily folded note on top of his English books. It was A4 size. Adam raised an eyebrow. He looked around suspiciously, before peering back down at it. He peeled it open and immediately realized who's handwriting it belonged to. Eli Goldsworthy.

_'Adam. I'm spending the day at home. I've got my excuses covered for Simpson and have yours at the ready if you're going join me. I'll be waiting in my car just outside the roundabout in front of school. Fitz and Owen were looking for trouble this morning and I'm not taking the risk today. I say we take let everything just settle down. Perhaps the storm will smooth over by tomorrow.'_

Adam stared down at the note, rereading it once or twice. Not for spelling errors or anything, but just to stitch the idea into his head. Adam could sense the fear in the stroke of Eli's pen and felt the urge to do something, anything. But it didn't make sense. Eli was the fearless one usually. And now there was doubt amongst the trio? Adam licked his lips, sliding the note into his pocket.

"Adam?" Clare said, striding down the hall. Adam glanced up at her, stunned slightly.

"Clare?" He returned. Adam noticed that Clare, too, held a note in her bandaged hands. "Eli?" He sighed, watching her putting the note away. Clare nodded, hauling her bag over her shoulder.

"I'm worried about him." Clare confessed uneasily.

"That makes two of us." Adam responded sternly. He watched as the thoughts bustling and turned in Clare's mind. She had been thinking about Eli, Adam could tell. It wasn't something Adam could protest against or root for. He wasn't sure if their problems with one another made them stronger or if they made them worse. He kept his theories to himself.

"Are we going after him?" Clare asked, breaking past Adam's busy conscience. Adam sighed, and shrugged uselessly.

"Should we?" He asked in return. Clare watched Adam for a moment before shrugging just like he did. Adam caught a blur over her shoulder. A blur that was staring at him. Adam brought it into focus and saw no other than Imogen Moreno. She had a bruised eye. The wound made Adam's brow furrow almost instantly. Why would Imogen Moreno have a bruised eye? She smirked at him as she walked along. Imogen would pass him. Adam couldn't let her slip away for yet another time.

"I really don't know. Maybe he's just a little stressed out about everything." Clare suggested quietly. She sounded far away by then.

"Yeah, yeah, maybe…" Adam murmured. Imogen was close to him by then, just a few more feet. "Look, Clare, I'll talk to you in a bit, okay?" Adam said absently as he moved away from her.

"Sure." Clare sighed, looking down at the ground with a million situations running through her mind. She ran her fingers through her locks of hair as the stress began to build castles at her temples. Adam darted forward at the escaping figure, and grabbed her by her arm, tightly.

"Imogen." Adam breathed, pulling at her. Imogen spun towards him, giggling as she fell against him.

"Strong grip, Adam Torres." She said in a flirtatious voice. Adam cringed slightly and pulled away from her. His face hardened again at the bruise on her face.

"What happened?" He asked. He cleared his throat, realizing how horribly feminine his voice sounded in that sentence. He hated it.

"Nothing that concerns you." Imogen said, attempting to slip away from him. Adam held onto her tighter.

"Anything to do with Vince concerns me." He sneered. He watched her eyes. So unreadable. So full of misunderstandings. "Did Vince do this to you?" He asked in a softer voice.

"Of course not."

"Don't lie." Adam said quickly, catching Imogen off guard. Imogen watched him with intense observation and interest in her eyes, like Adam was a rare species of some sort. "Don't tell me you don't know what I'm talking about because you do." He warned. Imogen was calmer than Adam could take. She tried to wriggle away from Adam but he grabbed higher up her forearm and pulled her back to him. "I'll honestly consider chaining you to the handrail if you don't give me answers." Adam said through his teeth, losing his patience with her. Imogen raised an eyebrow.

"Kinky." She smirked, eyeing Adam up and down. Adam rolled his eyes. Imogen sighed, adjusting her glasses. "You'll find out soon, trust me."

"I don't." Adam responded, watching her. Imogen looked at him right back. That sparked something in her, Adam could tell. "We may be on the same side but that doesn't count here in Degrassi. Take my advice and get away from Vince while you can." Adam looked at the bruise at her eye again. "Before it gets any worse." He whispered, staring down at it with a strange amount of sympathy and understanding. Imogen was smirking again. She took a step forward and placed a delicate hand on Adam's shoulder. She carefully ran a finger to his neck. Adam gulped at the gesture.

"Adam Torres," She began with a sigh, running the finger over his collarbones. Imogen chuckled softly to herself as her sharp eyes blinked back up at him seductively. "I pity you dearly for thinking we could ever be on the same side." She whispered against him. Adam's eyes widened.

"Um, what?' He stammered. Imogen playfully slapped his cheek. But it was a hard slap that caught Adam off guard. He stumbled away from Imogen, clutching his cheek. The pain didn't phase him. "Imogen, what do you mean by – " When Adam turned back to where she used to stand, she was gone. Just like that. Vanished. Adam stared at the students walking past just the same as they would be. But none of them were Imogen. He stared in horror. What just happened? Adam spied Bianca by her locker, flipping through the pages of her French book in confusion. He strode towards her sternly.

"Imogen Moreno." He stated as he skidded to a halt in front of her. Bianca almost jumped out of her skin.

"Um, hello to you too?" She questioned, taking her earphones out of her ears.

"Imogen Moreno. What does she have to do with everything?" Adam insisted. Bianca looked around, looking just as confused as she did when she was looking through her French book.

"What do you mean 'everything'?" She asked. Adam licked his lips, glancing around. He turned back to her.

"Vince. What does she have to do with it?" He asked. There was hesitation on Bianca's face. She paused, watching Adam's hard eyes.

"Nothing." She muttered. It was a lie. A blatant, easy lie.

"Bianca, I swear – "

"Adam, I think you're overthinking things." Bianca said, cutting past him eagerly.

"What? I'm not ov – "

"Perhaps you should take your mind off all of this for today, alright?" She interjected again. Adam stared at her in awe. Bianca had to think of something to tell him. Anything to make him believe her. "Have lunch with me today." She blurted out, before Adam could open his mouth again. Adam blinked.

"What?" He uttered. Bianca felt her cheeks becoming hot at the suggestion.

"I, uh… Have lunch with me, okay? You're… you're overthinking things." She mumbled, trying to look anywhere but at him. Adam felt a grin sparking at his lips, but he tried his best not to show it.

"I, umm… lunch? At The Dot?" He suggested, clearing his throat to prevent it from going high-pitched. Bianca sighed carelessly.

"Sure." She shrugged. She glanced back at him, seeing the turn of emotions in his eyes.

"Yeah, cool… I guess I really was just overthinking things." He added, nodding to himself. Bianca half smiled. Something was up.

"You were." She said lethargically. Adam's smile faded when he saw uncertainty in Bianca's eyes. "I'll see you later." She said, cutting past Adam's train of thoughts. He nodded after her.

"Yeah, see you at The Dot." He murmured. Bianca gave him a faint smile, before she slowly turned away from him. Adam watched as she began to walk off, almost in a limp. His eyes fell to the floor as he slid off the lockers. As he strolled down the hall to look for Clare, he began to feel something strange. He needed to talk to Drew. And Drew was at The Dot. He'd know what to do about everything. "Clare." Adam greeted the ghostly figure going through her locker. She turned to him.

"What?" She returned. She analyzed his face. "What's up?" She asked.

"I need to talk to Drew. He's at The Dot and I'm sure he's with Katie. Didn't you need to run something past her for the newspaper?" Adam asked, shrugging as he did so. Clare grinned slightly, shutting her locker softly.

"Adam, if that's your way of asking me to go to The Dot with you, then yes, I'll go. Come on." Clare looped her arm through Adam's lightly pulling him down the hall. Adam and Clare weaved their way through the students until the reached an aged blue door to their left. It was a normal shortcut to The Dot, through the parking lot. They had nearly reached the street crossing.

"Torres! Edwards!" Came that same chilling yell. Adam froze in his steps as Clare tried to step forward. Clare glanced at Adam in horror before she looked over her shoulder. She then looked back at Adam.

"Fitzgerald and Milligan." She muttered to him.

"Who else would it be?" Adam said back. He had just placed his foot on the sidewalk as a heavy hand landed on the back of his shirt, hauling him away from Clare. Adam stumbled to meet his opponent face to face, being grasped in his heavy arms.

"Don't!" Clare warned. Owen stared Adam down. His eyes were animalistic and his fists were curled in Adam's shirt.

"You can't do anything." He breathed. Adam's jaw tightened. Nobody knew what he was capable of. "I can crush you and nobody can stop me, little lady." He smirked. The hatred began to bubble in the pit of Adam's stomach again. Little lady? Adam watched over Owen's shoulder as Fitz began taunting Clare. Trying to get hold of her wrists, smirking and muttering things to her. It made Adam more than uncomfortable.

"You're Drew's best friend. I'm his brother. You can't touch me." Adam said through his teeth. Owen leaned forward.

"Get off me!" Adam heard Clare mutter from behind Owen.

"I can do whatever I want." Owen grumbled. His breath was hard against Adam's face. He heard a whimper from behind him.

"Mark, I swear to god, stop it!" Clare was saying. Adam's fingers curled into his palms, forming whitening fists at his sides. He stared up at Owen.

"Make him leave Clare alone." Adam grunted. Owen chuckled, shaking his head. There was another protest from Clare, it made Adam's eyes darken.

"Nope." Owen said easily.

"Fitz, I – Get off!" Clare protested again.

"Stop." Adam hummed, licking his lips impatiently. Owen just shook his head again. All he needed was a little push. That was it. Just one last push…

"Adam!" And so the hero sprung into action at the call of his name. Clare, the damsel in distress, was calling him. She needed him. He brought his knee up, hitting Owen between his legs. The older boy crumpled to the ground and Adam ran forward. He slid an arm over Fitz's neck, hauling him away from Clare. Stop. Arm over neck. Could he pull the move? Could he really live with himself? Adam hadn't killed those two people. He had just… paralyzed them. Was that the same thing? Was he a murderer? Adam looked back at Fitz, scratching at his wrists. No. No, he wasn't. Adam made his decision and stomped down on Fitz's ankle, hard. There was a brief cry of pain as Adam shoved him to the ground. He desperately looked up at Clare, whose eyes were red with fresh tears.

"Clare." He breathed, taking a step forward.

"I'm okay, I'm fine…" She muttered shakily. It was obvious that she was anything but fine. Adam attempted to comfort her but his enemies were rising again.

"Torres!" Owen grunted, attempting to pull himself up to his feet. Adam glanced at him, then back at Clare. She was staring at him, after witnessing him push Owen and Fitz aside as if it was easier than anything.

"Go." Adam breathed. Clare glared at him.

"What?" She asked, taking a step forward. Adam firmly grabbed her by her forearms, moving her away from him.

"Go." Adam said again.

"But, A-Adam – " Clare tried pulling Adam from what he was about to encounter but she couldn't. Just as Adam glanced back at Owen, a fist rammed right into his nose. Clare squealed as Adam thumped backwards onto the sidewalk.

"Stop!" Came a scream. As Adam clutched his face, glaring up at his opponent with a twitching lip, Clare looked behind him. And there was Drew. He jolted across the street like he was in the Olympics. "You said you'd never lay a hand on him!" He bellowed. Owen scrambled away from Adam instantly.

"Dude, it's just – "

"No! You stay the hell away from him! You – Adam!" Drew spotted his brother on the floor, bleeding at his nose. Adam dabbed the blood with his sleeve, glancing down at it. The anger boiled inside of him as he glared back up at Owen and Fitz. But something overpowered his anger. Embarrassment. He had taken a hit and not done anything about it. RonRon wouldn't be pleased. "Get out of here!" Drew said through his teeth, shoving Owen's shoulders. Petrified by Drew's reaction, Owen ran for Fitz grabbing him by his jacket.

"Time to go, man." He grumbled.

"I'll call the police!" Drew warned.

"Come on, man! Let's go!" Owen repeated frantically. Fitz's eyes hardened on the quarterback. His lips were curved into a deadly look of disgust.

"Let's go." He uttered, grabbing Owen by his jacket. As they walked away, Drew looked down at Adam. "Next time, Torres." Fitz muttered, just as he and Owen slipped round a corner.

"Adam?" Drew breathed, almost skidding to by Adam's side. The younger Torres was pissed. More than that. He was angry and frustrated with himself. He knew he could've done something to show that he wasn't afraid of them. Adam winced in pain as he touched his nose.

"I'm fine." He said in a harsh voice, with cold eyes.

"No, Adam. You're not." Drew shook his head, bringing a hand up to Adam's face. Adam swatted him away.

"I am." He urged heavily, grasping a garbage bin near him to haul himself to his feet. Drew immediately assisted him. Adam leaned against the bin, squinting down at his feet. He was light-headed. His body was sore. He felt useless and defeated. He could've easily taken them on. But why didn't he? Because he could've beaten them… right?

"Adam… Oh, man, Adam… Jesus…" Drew whimpered, peering at Adam's face, examining his wound. Adam rolled his eyes.

"I'm fine." He insisted.

"Oh, man…" Drew uttered, backing away from Adam, running his fingers through his hair.

"No, Drew, listen to me – "

"I'll call mom. And – and an ambulance!" He stammered, scrambling for the phone in his pocket. Adam reached out, grabbing Drew by his wrist. Drew winced at the touch.

"Don't." Adam grumbled, watching Drew's struggling expression carefully. Drew must have been thinking about Vince. If only he knew… "Look, I'll… I'll be alright, okay? It was just a small punch, okay? Nothing's broken. Just don't tell mom or anything." He said in the most soothing voice he could. Drew's teeth were chattering. It was obvious by the wild look on his face that his emotions were unsettled.

"Why not?" Drew asked through his shaking lips.

"I have my reasons. And they're good reasons. Just… please. Don't." Adam urged, trying to give his brother a pleading look. Drew looked down at him and felt like it was his fault. He knew he shouldn't have befriended Owen after what he did to Adam earlier on in the year. "Andrew. Come on, now." He pulled Drew into a hug. Drew returned it in a brotherly manner, patting his back hard, despite Adam's state.

"I have a birthday date with Katie now but if you want I can cancel it and – "

"No." Adam said against Drew's shoulder, shaking his head. "Spend your time with Katie. You've had enough stress." He said, pulling away from him. Drew took another long look at Adam's face, analyzing the wound with a sense of regret. "I promise you I'll be fine." Adam murmured, patting Drew's shoulder. Drew couldn't smile at him. But he attempted to fake it.

"I'm sure you will be." He said in return, even if it was a lie. Adam didn't like the look he was getting. But he knew that he deserved that face and nothing more.

"I will be. Promise." He murmured, giving Drew a supportive push away. Drew stumbled back onto the sidewalk, squinting at the cold air, drenched in the sunlight desperately trying to break through the clouds above. He watched as Adam wiped more of the blood onto his sleeves. He felt as if the whole Vince scenario was starting all over again. But. It was oh-so different.

"Adam!" Clare gasped, rushing towards him like he was a magnet. "Adam, oh my god…" She muttered as he looked up at her.

"I'm fine. Trust me." He sniffed.

"Are you insane?" Came a shout. Elijah Goldsworthy. Adam and Clare jumped at his voice. Eli's eyes were wide. His neck was muscular. Someone obviously hadn't taken their medication lately. "You could've gotten yourself killed!" He exclaimed.

"Eli, I'm f – "

"Why didn't you listen to me? I left you a note in your locker to come meet me in front of school! Not go behind it!" He pushed right past Clare, glaring down at Adam and the blood at his face.

"Eli – "

"How stupid can you be?" He bellowed. Clare's eyes widened as she looked up at him, then back at Adam. Adam stared at Eli with a frown.

"What?" Adam breathed, utterly confused at the accusation.

"How could you just ignore me like that? Owen and Fitz are – are – they're dangerous! And now look at what they've done to you!" Eli reached out to the blood Adam had wiped on his sleeve. Adam shoved his hand away bitterly. Clare quickly sensed trouble.

"Guys." She interjected, taking a step forward.

"Did you just call me stupid?" Adam asked through his teeth.

"Yes!" Eli exclaimed, "Look at you!" He gestured to Adam's body. But Adam's gaze didn't shift. He glared at Eli.

"Stupid?" He spat, stepping towards him, fists coiling and all.

"Okay Eli, Adam, just stop it!" Clare warned, getting between them briefly. Adam's jaw tightened.

"You think I'm stupid?" He growled as his face turned pinkish. Clare glanced up at him and placed a hand against his forearm.

"Adam." Clare said firmly, trying to calm him. Adam shook his head, looking down at Eli with a harsh facial expression.

"Whatever, man." He grumbled, turning away. Adam turned his back on his two friends, marching his own way.

"Adam!" Clare called. Eli grabbed Clare by her wrist and pulled her away from Adam.

"Leave him." Eli muttered. It was that. That on it's own that made Adam spin around.

"What's the matter with you? I was helping Clare!" Adam grumbled, marching forward in a frightening manner. Eli instinctively backed up. The movement snapped Adam out of his haze. He almost brought his fists up at Eli. Almost.

"He hasn't taken his meds, Adam! He's just a little out of it!" Clare squeezed in front of Eli again, looking back up at Adam. He refused to look back at Eli. Adam stared back down at the ground.

"He better take them soon, then." He uttered, moving away from Clare. She grasped him.

"Adam, he didn't mean anything by it. You know that." She said soothingly. Adam paused, debating his next move. Instead he sighed heavily and shrugged Clare off of him.

"Let's just go, okay?" He grumbled, stepping onto the sidewalk. Clare quickly grab Eli, tugging him along.

"Where to, genius?" Eli asked sarcastically. Adam fought back his urge to spin around.

"Yours. Let's get you your meds and get this day over with." He explained bitterly. It was a silent walk to Eli's car. And an even quieter drive home. Eli looked depressed. His emotions must have been a whirlwind from medical withdrawal. Clare looked just as stressed as Katie did when Drew had his PTS. Adam was numb. Frustrated. Embarrassed. And there was no way he could go back in time and beat Fitz and Owen. It angered him more than anything. But once they were safe at home, and Eli took his meds, the tension slowly slid away.

"Hey, man." Eli hummed from the kitchen counter. Adam looked up at him with a slight look of surprise on his face. He crossed his arms, not in the mood to talk. Clare waited eagerly for the conversation to unfold. Licking his lips, Eli looked carefully back up at Adam. "You're not stupid. At all." He uttered. As Adam looked down into Eli's eyes, he saw that Eli was finally himself again. Adam felt his muscles loosen, looking away. "Come on, buddy." Eli sighed, putting his glass of water aside. He pulled his arms around Adam without much hesitation. Adam rolled his eyes and hugged Eli back.

"Urgh." Clare groaned in relief, falling back onto a comfy sofa. She shook her head at them, getting comfortable. "I hate you two sometimes. You're always stressing me out." She grumbled. Eli chuckled, pulling away from Adam. Adam grinned at him and patted his back.

"We know." The two boys said in chorus. They glanced at one another, chuckling slightly, before making their way over to the couch. Eli sat by Clare, pulling an arm over her. Clare rested her head against Eli's shoulder. Ah. Adam was left out again. He just sat by Eli and teasingly mimicked Clare against Eli, and pressed a hand against Eli's chest. Eli started laughing as Adam snuggled against him. Clare frowned, moving away from Eli to stare at them.

"Um, Eli, please tell your boyfriend to share." She said jokingly. Adam just laughed it off, moving off of Eli.

"Sharing is caring." Eli muttered, glancing up at Adam as Clare pressed back against him. Adam watched carefully. By the small hints being thrown at him, he quickly assumed that Clare and Eli both still had feelings for each other and were covering it up with a 'close friendship'. Well, back to day one. Adam scooted further away and into a separate armchair, giving them some room. He curled into himself and shut his eyes. The embarrassment of losing to Fitz and Owen quickly found it's way back to him. His teeth clenched behind his lips. It took him long enough to fall asleep.

Lunch was always mediocre at the Goldsworthy house. So afterwards there was much video gaming and sleeping to make up for it. By the time dinner had been served, it was dark outside. Adam struggled to put his shoes on. He had one thing on his mind. The party. Tonight. He smirked slightly as he got back to his feet.

"You sure you want to leave now? You can always stay." Eli shrugged, opening the door for him. A cold breeze rushed into the house.

"No. I've got, umm… things to do." Adam sighed, stepping out into the cold. He looked back at Eli and Clare. "I'll give you guys some privacy. See you guys on Monday." He said with a faint smile. Eli and Clare glanced at one another, turning pinkish.

"See you Monday, Adam." Clare muttered, looking back at him. Adam nodded at Eli, and turned away. He walked calmly to the end of the path, waiting for the door to shut. When it did, Adam's face hardened. The party. Vince. RonRon. Everyone. He strode after a taxi, grumbling an address nearby the old petrol station. The taxi was cold and the ride was bumpy. His nose, that had felt perfectly healed, was starting to throb again. Perhaps the cold had an effect on him. He felt something warm drizzle down his lips. He quickly reached up. He was bleeding. Again. Adam wiped his blood by the dried blood on his sleeve.

"You okay, kid?" The taxi driver asked, looking into the rear view mirror. Adam chuckled a bit.

"Yeah, man." He replied, sniffing slightly. Soon, he was out on the icy road again, searching. Searching, searching, searching, and…

"Welcome back." Came that voice. It neared Adam's ear. He kept on walking, and felt a smirk on his lips.

"Vince. How're you doing tonight?" He asked. He wasn't sure where the confidence was coming from. Perhaps it was the cover up his pitfall from earlier on with Fitz and Owen.

"Doing good, Torres, doing good." Vince responded. They neared the petrol station and Adam saw Bianca, talking to RonRon. His eyes widened. Oh man. He had missed their lunch at The Dot. Bianca's expression changed at the sight of Adam approaching.

"Bianca, I…" Adam began. He was cut short when more blood left his nose. Adam's hands quickly went to his face, wiping off the blood quickly. Bianca was perplexed at the sudden motion.

"Are you bleeding?" She asked. RonRon and Vince glanced at him.

"Yeah, I, uh… got into a bit of trouble today at school." Adam said. He didn't want to make it seem like he had lost entirely. Bianca instantly knew what he was talking about.

"Well are you alright?" She asked with a shrug.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine… Sorry that I didn't see you at lunch." He muttered, slightly embarrassed.

"It's fine." She shrugged, looking elsewhere with her arms folded.

"Here, let me take a look at you." RonRon grumbled, nodding at Adam. Adam glanced at Bianca once more before slipping away behind the pickup truck. RonRon wiped his hands on his jeans and made his way over to Adam. Dean, with wonder in his eyes, peeped over RonRon's shoulder to also get a look at the wound. RonRon harshly peered down at Adam.

"Damn, man." Hal chuckled slightly from RonRon's side. Adam nervously began to fidget.

"Why were you fighting at school?" Dean asked curiously.

"Who cares? Torres is boss." Hal laughed, taking a swig of whatever he was drinking. Adam couldn't identify it. He was greatly unfamiliar with alcohol.

"I just wanted to know." Dean shrugged, glancing up at Hal. Hal shook his head, pulling away from the bottle in his palm.

"Whatever, faggot." He grunted, taking another swig. Adam's eyes widened. That word. He hated that word. He watched as Dean looked down at the floor with a hurt look in his eyes. Meanwhile, RonRon grinned, still closely examining Adam's wound.

"Don't call him that." Adam said softly. Hal laughed.

"Why not?" He asked, shrugging. _Because I'm transgender and the word 'faggot' can be considered offensive language to certain people of the LGBT community._ The adequate answer lingered on his tongue for a moment. But as far as the gang was concerned, Adam was male-bodied and straight. He gulped. He was in a tough situation.

"I just, uh… don't think gay people should be discriminated or whatever." Adam shrugged half-heartedly. Dean looked up at him, with some indescribable torture visible in his eyes.

"Yeah, man, whatever. At least Dean ain't a tranny." He giggled, placing the bottle to his lips again. Adam felt his stomach plunge. That word, over everything else, was the worst. He felt like he could cry, but knew that would look utterly stupid to do. Suddenly, RonRon turned away from Adam angrily.

"Hey, man, watch the language! Alright?" He grunted. Adam stared at him in awe. Wait. Back it up. RonRon shoved Hal at his shoulders, pushing him against the pick-up truck. Hal had his hands up in surrender as he giggled. "And stop drinking, man." RonRon grabbed the bottle from Hal and slammed it into Dean's hands. RonRon shook his head.

"Sorry, man, I forget sometimes." Hal giggled, sliding down to the floor.

"Forget what?" Adam asked in a curious little voice. RonRon glanced at Adam beneath his dark eyebrows, and looked back down at Adam's face.

"My brother, James." RonRon grunted, looking back at the other cars. Adam followed his gaze to a figure. Whoa. They looked quite alike indeed. James laughed as he pulled away form his cigarette, conversing with the other men. "James is a good guy. But he's a little something called transgender, not many people understand him. In fact, only a handful of people know. Not even Bee or Vince." He explained in a heavy voice. Adam felt his heart skip a beat in excitement. Adam looked back at him. Oh, of course James was trans. He had the stereotypical height different, a slightly rounder face, wider hips; the whole shabang. He was handsome though, a bit like RonRon was, only fresher faced.

"I see." Adam uttered, clearing his throat. Awkward. RonRon slapped Adam on the shoulder harshly.

"Your nose will be fine, Torres." He sighed. There was a change in him. A soft side. A side that had never been exposed to Adam before. James was the trigger.

"It must be weird having a sister for a brother, don't you think?" Hal muttered to Dean, trying to get the alcohol from his hands.

"James is RonRon's brother, he's a man if he says he is." The words just flew out of Adam's mouth before he could even think about them. His face softened when he realized just what he had said. The three other men looked up at Adam questioningly. And for once, it didn't look like RonRon was about to quarter him.

"Exactly..." RonRon said slowly, staring at Adam curiously. Dean blinked up at him, just as confused as RonRon. Adam's cheeks redden as he cleared his throat.

"End of discussion." He uttered, quickly turning away. Dear god, he almost made a fool of himself once again.

"Who's ready to head off to the party?" Vince called suddenly. Adam eagerly chased after the loud crowd to get away from RonRon's gaze. "Torres!" Vince called, motioning Adam into his car. Adam strode quickly over to him and squeezed into the backseat, trampling over the grotesque substance on the car floor. Adam cringed slightly but elsewhere to ignore it.

"What you said back there was really cool." Came a voice by his ear. Adam almost jumped out of his skin. It was just Dean. He settled against the car seat as Dean pushed next to him, allowing space for those by his side.

"Thanks." Adam uttered softly. Dean had an arm over him as they drove off. Adam raised an eyebrow, following the arm back up to Dean's face.

"What?" Dean asked with a one armed shrugged.

"You guys are getting pretty hot." Hal commented. Adam slithered away from Dean's arm, clearing his throat.

"Funny." He coughed. Dean laughed a bit, grinning at Hal.

"Hilarious." Hal smirked. As Adam looked at him, he realized something. His pupils were huge and his eyes were wandering. Adam's smile faded.

"Hal, are you high?" Adam asked carefully. There was laughter from within the car as they hit a bump. Hal kicked Adam's knee playfully.

"What do you think, Torres?' He grinned. Adam stared out the window. Oh, not again. Of course the party would involve alcohol and drugs. Which was exactly what he didn't think about beforehand. Perfect.

"Here." Dean muttered, nudging a bottle against Adam's knuckles. Alcohol. Adam shook his head.

"Don't drink." He responded proudly. Dean just pushed the drink against his hands harder.

"It'll soothe the pain." He tempted. Adam stared down at the bottle.

"Soothe the pain?" He half laughed, thinking Dean was just messing with him.

"Come on. For one night." Dean murmured, smirking. Adam gulped. All the excuses flooded Adam's mind as he looked down at the bottle. All he could think of was Fiona. Her drinking problems and how it turned both her and him away from alcohol. But the pain. The worries. Adam's fingers slowly wrapped around the neck of the bottle. "One night." Dean repeated, watching him carefully. Adam pulled the bottle up, examining it. Hal looked from Dean to Adam, then back.

"Well, isn't this interesting?" He breathed, watching Adam all the same. Adam felt like he was going to be sick. And he hadn't even drank anything yet.

"Fine." Adam grumbled softly. Jesus, Adam, don't. His conscience was screaming at him to have some common sense but even it was no use. He placed the bottle to his lips and tried to block of the taste. The alcohol swished passed his teeth. He took it in gulps. Just wanting to get it over with already. Dean raised an eyebrow as Adam pulled away, squinting slightly. He coughed once, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Whoa. What have you become?" Hal said sarcastically, laughing to herself. Adam coughed again. The after taste was horrible. Dean took the bottle from him.

"That's enough for you." Dean chuckled, ruffling Adam's hair.

"Seriously?" Adam asked, confused at Dean's reaction. Dean held up the bottle, pointing at it.

"This is what people call a Traitor Drink. That basically means that it's way more alcoholic than it tastes." Dean said, passing the bottle onto Hal.

"So?" Adam shrugged carelessly.

"And you just chugged it." Dean added. Adam shrugged again. He wasn't sure what they were going on about.

"I don't feel any different." He stated. Hal giggled slightly from Dean's side, attempting to screw the cap back onto the bottle. But his fingers just wouldn't cooperate.

"Yeah, it's a Traitor Drink. You're going to feel it later. Like, really feel it." Dean explained, taking the bottle from Hal. He handed it back to Adam. "Enjoy it while you can." He said with a playful wink. Adam looked down at the bottle as they went over another bump in the car.

"A Traitor Drink, eh?" Adam murmured thoughtfully, placing it back to his lips. He chugged it just like he did before. Same reaction. Nothing. Dean shook his shoulders, cheering him on. Adam grinned as he pulled away from the alcohol again. "This is actually disgusting. Really. Get it away from me." He grumbled, smiling faintly as he did so. Dean laughed, taking the drink away from Adam's grasp as he said so.

"You'll be drunk by the time we get to the party." He exclaimed. Adam's eyes widened for a moment before he chuckled to himself.

"I don't think so." He muttered, shaking his head.

Lesson one: always trust what Dean says. Because when that stolen Mercedes pulled up into pit, someone was unable to comprehend what was even going on. Bianca hopped out of the pick-up truck, looking sullenly around the party. The whole place looked just the same, per usual, but instead there was loud music coming from one of the cars. And everyone was twice as drunk or high. A typical reckless party with Vince. Bianca sighed, leaning against the truck, watching the people dance around the fire, yelling, laughing, and all that garbage she was used to. And then, Vince kicked open his car door. He was laughing and shaking his head as he moved away from his car. Dean then burst out of the passengers side, red in the face with laughter. Bianca raised an eyebrow as Dean almost collapsed from laughing so hard.

"Um, what's so funny?" Bianca asked, looking unamused at his state.

"A – Adam! He's so – I can't!" Dean gasped.

"What about Adam?" Bianca shrugged, looking back at the car. Adam popped his head out of the car.

"Hey, Bee!" He called, out of breath. Bianca was taken aback at his messy hair and pink face.

"You alright, Torres?" She asked with a confused expression. Adam attempted to get out of the car.

"Yeah, no, I'm great! Fantastic, actually – " He rolled right out of the passenger side and onto the floor with a thud.

"Dude!" Bianca exclaimed, pushing herself off the pick-up truck, looking alarmed. Dean roared with laughter from Bianca's side. She glanced at him in slight disgust and confusion, then looked back at Adam. He was fighting to get to his feet, laughing and stumbling. He fell against another car, trying to haul himself back up. Bianca instinctively came to Adam's side and eased him onto his feet.

"Oh my god…" Adam giggled, finally able to stand. He lost his balance for a moment but Bianca quickly held him by his shoulders and helped him stay on foot. "I am feeling so… so great right now." He grinned. He had a quick eye twitch for a moment that flicked a switch off in Bianca's mind.

"Adam, are you drunk?" She asked, staring at him in the fire light.

"Yeah, I… I think." Adam replied with a giggle.

"Adam, you're so drunk." Dean said, making his way over. Bianca glanced back at him for a moment.

"He is?" She exclaimed. Adam slipped from her grasp, tumbling onto Dean. He wasn't really sure what he was feeling. Or what was happening to him.

"Traitor drink. Quick and deadly." Dean purred in a funny voice. Bianca felt a small smirk form on her lips.

"This'll be interesting." She grinned, looking back at Adam. He was completely spaced out. Bianca giggled, making her way into his line of vision. "Someone's been quite the outlaw lately. Are you sure you're Adam Torres?" She asked, stepping closer to him. Adam bit on his lower lip as the alcohol pumped through him. He leaned forward, now close to Bianca's face.

"Yes." He whispered, with a look in his eyes that was unfamiliar to everyone. He was drunk, the poor kid, and didn't even mean to be.

"Wow, mister. Fighting, lying, stealing, skipping class, and alcohol. What's next?" She asked playfully. Adam grinned a bit, looking down into her eyes.

"You want to find out?" He replied softly. They looked at one another for a moment. Faces so close. Grinning. So closed off from everything else around them. It was then, when they both felt something. It was like the first time they met. Adam felt his smirk fade away as he glanced down at her lips. Bianca caught the gesture with her own gaze, and looked back up into his eyes. Square one.

"Whoa, getting hot over here!" Dean chuckled, shaking Adam's shoulder. He snapped out of his trance, trying to grin again.

"Yeah, sure…" He grumbled. Adam looked back at Bianca. There was worry in both of their eyes. Square one. Dean pulled Adam away from Bianca, giggling as he did so.

"Too much to drink for you, Torres." Dean said, shaking his head. Bianca cleared her throat, looking away from Adam. She blinked at the ground.

"Later." She uttered. Adam licked his lips nervously.

"Yeah. Later." He breathed. Dean pulled his arm again, pulling him further and further away from Bianca.

"Come on Adam show me what you've got!" Dean laughed from his side. Adam watched Bianca as she moved away from the pick-up truck and walked out of sight. Adam still stared after her with his blurry vision, wondering what was even going on in his own head. "Come on, buddy! Lets see if your feet work as good as your fists!" Dean shoved Adam suddenly. Adam found himself suddenly in a crowd of people. Man, it was like a real rave. A real one. Like something Adam would've seen in a movie or a TV show. He couldn't focus on anyone's face. His eyesight was a mess and he felt as if he lost control of his body. But he was moving to the music. Not dancing, not jumping, but… moving. He couldn't map out what he was doing because he wasn't even sure himself. But everyone around he was doing it. It that what people do when they're drunk? Just totally lose it and get caught between some sort of jump slash dance? Dancing was something like contemporary, or ballet or something. Something you paid to see or had a passion for. Jumping was like in hop scotch or cutting down a couple of stairs.

This wasn't anything like that. He had no idea what he was doing. Every now and then Dean would pull him aside and get him another drink. Adam reached the point of not really caring. That wasn't like him. Not at all. But he felt different that night. The pain of everything in his little real world was fading as the minutes went by. That was his addiction, not the alcohol. He felt hands on him and lips against his skin occasionally, and still had no idea what was going on. Maybe Bianca was right. Maybe he wasn't Adam Torres after all. But as he caught his reflection against a car door once he knew that of course he was still himself. It'd be impossible not to be himself. Nevertheless, his surroundings were swaying, his body was going on overdrive, and his mind was absent. He then felt a strong hand on his shoulder.

"Adam, my man! You're insane!" Vince said, patting him like a brother would.

"What?" Adam breathed, almost stumbling. How long had he been 'dancing' for? He was still stuck in the crowd of people, they were all just like him. All of them. It frightened him to know that he was just like Vince's gang for the night. It really did.

"You've been party rocking for about three hours!" Vince exclaimed. Adam blinked at him in confusion.

"I have?" He asked. Vince held up his watch. Adam could barely read the time. His face distorted in shock. It really had been nearly three hours of this dancing and drinking scenario.

"I have to get home." Adam breathed in realization.

"Already? We were going to go get some more booze. Are you sure?" Vince asked, laughing slightly.

"I have to get home, man." Adam repeated, shaking his head. He was already dizzy enough.

"Alright, alright, man! Take it easy! See you Monday night, alright? Recover." Vince chuckled, patting Adam's back hard. Again. Adam groaned slightly and stumbled away from him. He was shoved back into the crowd of people, searching for anyone to take him back home. Nope. They were all too drugged up and drunk for Adam's liking. A taxi would suit him better.

"Hey, you." Came Bianca's voice. Adam felt her hand grasp his forearm as she pulled him out of the crowd. "You're quite the life of the party." She said, steadying him again. She noticed something wasn't quite right. Adam the confident drunk was suffering from a bad case of 'I drank too much'. Bianca watched his sweaty face as he tried focusing on her.

"I… I have to get home." Adam told her, feeling sicker and sicker with every second. He stumbled once more, almost falling this time. But Dean ran up to him, catching him before he could.

"Whoa, whoa, buddy, relax!" Dean laughed, holding onto Adam by his shirt to steady him.

"You should really get him home, Dean." Bianca sighed, watching Adam as his eyes wandered around his surroundings in confusion.

"Yeah, I'll take him home alright." Dean uttered, watching Adam just like Bianca did. But there was something different about it. Bianca glanced at Dean as he began supporting Adam to get to his car. She didn't want to think about Adam anymore. She just didn't want to. So she looked away, trying to find someone to satisfy her for the night. To make her forget about her life. Just for a few minutes. Adam again looked back for her but she was already walking off. "Hey, man, you need to chill." Dean said, placing Adam in the passenger side of his car. The convertible's roof was over them. Adam was hoping it'd be down so that the fresh air could sober him up for when he returned home. Never mind that plan, then. Dean got into the driver's seat, slamming the door shut. It made a ringing noise in Adam's ear. He squinted. "Hey, buddy, calm down…" Dean murmured. Adam felt Dean place a hand against his stomach. Dean's weight shifted as he moved forward. He kissed Adam's jawbone.

"I need to get home." Adam grumbled in a slur. He blinked as his surroundings faded and came back to him at different intervals. He felt Dean's lips against him. Pressing against his jaw, then slowly down his neck and shoulder. He blinked as Dean tugged at Adam's shirt. He couldn't even process what was happening. All he wanted to do was go back home. But Dean was sucking hard on his skin, and biting him, moving his hands against him. Suddenly he pulled at Adam's face, and slammed his lips against Adam's. Dean eagerly deepened the kiss, shoving Adam against the window of the car. Groaning, and completely dominating him. His muscular arms were flexed, and his model-like jawbones were sharper than ever as they moved Dean's lips against Adam's. Adam was kissing him back. He was still in that drunken state of confusion. All he knew was that his wet lips were pressed against Dean's and their bodies were against one another. But then; a fatal mistake. Dean's hand moved down, towards Adam's lower area. Adam's eyes shot open. Reality hit him.

"Dean I need to get home!" He blurted out, pulling Dean's face away from him. Dean's eyes were wide as he looked down at Adam. They stared at one another. What had they just done exactly? Neither of them was quite sure. Dean gulped, looking at Adam breathing heavily against him with a reddening face. "Please, man, I just want to go home." Adam breathed, shaking his head slightly. Dean nervously lost eye contact with him, and let his hands slip off Adam's body. He slid back into the driver's seat, adjusting his shirt. Adam shifted back into proper seating position, staring at the dash with wide eyes. Honestly. What had they just done?

"Alright." Dean said in a low voice, sticking his keys in the ignition. He cleared his throat as the engine revved up at the headlights shone the path in front of them. They silently drove out of the pit and out onto the road. Adam leaned against the window, refusing to make eye contact with Dean. Adam hadn't been so spontaneous before. Perhaps the alcohol really was too much for him to handle. The blood was poorly circulating around Adam's body as it was now concentrated in a lower area. He gulped when he saw Dean lift a hand from the steering wheel. He glared at him. But Dean was only going to switch on the radio. Oh. Adam settled down again. All that Dean had was Skrillex mixes. It was banging around with Adam's head. The whole ride was silent between the two of them.

"I'll, umm… see you on Monday." Adam grumbled as they sat parked outside Adam's house for a moment.

"Hm. Yeah. Monday. Mhm." Dean nodded, chewing on the inside of his cheek.

"Mhm. Kay." Adam swiftly turned to the door, opening it quickly. Despite being off balance, Adam stepped out onto the cold pavement. The second he shut the door, the car was off. Figured. Adam turned to face his house. Either it was shaking or Adam needed a full body cleanse. Nope. He definitely needed the cleanse. Adam stumbled down the driveway, obviously unable to climb the tree. He was drenched in cooling sweat, and looked like he hadn't slept in days. He weakly took out his house keys and bent over. Trying to get a key into a lock at night, while being unable to see and lacking brain power, was much harder than it seemed. Adam cursed under his breath as he missed the lock over and over, scratching at the wood with the tip of the key.

Finally, he managed to find it. He sighed in relief as he twisted the key with success. Ah. Home. He shoved the key out, almost tripping back as he did so. He practically fell into his own house. Literally, actually. Adam collapsed forward onto the floor. The TV was on. The whole house smelled of apple pie. Adam stayed uselessly on the ground, with his cheek pressed against the floor and his mouth open slightly. His face felt sticky against the floor. His ears were ringing with Skrillex, echoing about in his shattered skull.

"Adam?" Came a voice from the living room.

"Uh-huh…" Adam groaned from the ground. He slapped a hand onto the table by his side, trying to haul himself to his feet. Drew popped his head over the sofa.

"You okay, man?" Drew asked, watching Adam struggling to his feet. Adam reached out and shut the door behind him.

"Yeah, man." He whimpered, attempting to place one foot in front of the other without looking any more like an idiot. He then realized that his parents were on the couch, but were fast asleep.

"Where were you all night?" Drew asked, standing from the couch. He made his way over to Adam, who was attempting to make it to the stairs. "Do you have any idea how late it is? I had to make up an excuse for you." Drew said through his teeth.

"Sorry." Adam uttered, placing a sweaty hand on the handrail for the staircase. Drew smelled something in the air and was immediately alert.

"Adam." He said sternly, placing a heavy hand on Adam's shoulder. Big mistake. "Have you been – " Adam collapsed forward onto the stairs. He groaned, reaching up at the steps, trying to pull himself up as if he was in slow motion. "…drinking." Drew finished, watching Adam for a moment before helping him to his feet. "Adam, you've been drinking." Drew whispered, clutching onto Adam's arm. Adam looked up at him.

"Just a bit." He lied.

"Just a bit?" Drew repeated, staring him down with his soft eyes. Adam gulped.

"Yeah. Just a bit." Adam lied once more. He had to throw up. Now. Adam turned away from Drew, desperately trying to climb up the stairs in an uncoordinated manner. Drew sighed, watching him make his way to the top. "We're talking about this tomorrow, Adam." He called after his brother.

"Yep. Sure!" Adam whimpered, bursting the bathroom door open. "Oh god, oh god, oh god…" He muttered, tossing the toilet seat up as he scrambled over it, emptying whatever had to go. Drew heard the gargling from downstairs and cringed.

"Nasty." He remarked softly to himself. He turned back to the couch, taking his place again. He shook his head as he lifted the remote control. "Amateurs." He sighed.

_[A/N: Sorry for the delay, lots of work lately. :( You're all great and your reviews are much appreciated. I take all of them into consideration.]_


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